Politicians in the US state of Utah have voted to bring back execution by firing squad if lethal injections are unavailable, which would make it the only state in the country to permit the practice.
Firing squads were used for executions in Utah for decades before the adoption of lethal injection in 2004.
The Republican-sponsored bill, which passed the state Senate by 18-10, was introduced amid national concerns about the efficacy of lethal injections.
The measure, approved last month by the Utah House of Representatives, says a firing squad should be used if the state cannot obtain the substances needed for a lethal injection.
Several states have had to search for new drugs for their lethal injection cocktails after many pharmaceutical companies, mostly in Europe, imposed sales bans because they objected to having medications made for other purposes being used in executions.
Supporters of the legislation said three states - Oklahoma, Ohio and Arizona - recently carried out lethal injections that led to inmates' physical distress and drawn-out deaths, and that death by firing squad was more humane.
The bill's sponsor - Republican state Representative Paul Ray - said someone executed by gunfire typically dies in three to five seconds. "It's a quick bleed-out," he said.
The bill now goes to Utah Governor Gary Herbert.
In a statement, a spokesman for the Republican governor said he had not yet decided whether to sign the measure.
