BATON ROUGE - Louisiana is scheduled to hold an execution March 18. It would be the state's first since 2010. A federal judge is weighing whether the state's execution protocol using nitrogen gas meets constitutional requirements.

Sunday, Jessie Hoffman's attorneys submitted proposed findings and legal conclusions in their lawsuit fighting Louisiana's new nitrogen gas execution protocol.

They asked the federal court in Baton Rouge to issue a preliminary injunction to prevent his execution while the court reviewed his constitutional claims.

Alabama was the first state in the country to execute an inmate, convicted murderer 58-year-old Kenneth Smith, using nitrogen gas in January 2024.

Rev. Jeff Hood, spiritual advisor to Kenneth Smith, was at the execution and described what he witnessed to reporters.

"When they turned the nitrogen on, he began to convulse. He popped up on the gurney over and over and over again. It's wrong to experiment on people. But that's what I saw," said Hood.

In the state's proposed findings, they said the nitrogen hypoxia execution method is designed to be fast and painless by replacing oxygen with nitrogen, causing unconsciousness and death without physical suffering.

While convulsions may occur, they are not linked to pain. Oxygen levels drop rapidly, leading to unconsciousness within seconds to a few minutes, depending on breathing. The state has argued nitrogen hypoxia is the quickest, least painful, and most practical option.

Hoffman proposed the use of a firing squad or a drug cocktail used in assisted suicide, but that has never been used for executions and can take minutes to hours with potential discomfort.

On Friday, Chief Judge Shelly Dick heard testimony on Hoffman's request to prevent the state from executing him. At the end of the hearing, Dick gave both sides 12 hours to submit briefs outlining their positions.

In the filings, Hoffman claimed that his PTSD and longtime Buddhist meditation practice make him more vulnerable to extreme pain and suffering during a nitrogen gas execution. He also argued that this method would prevent him from practicing his religion in his final moments.

It's unclear when Dick will rule on the injunction. Regardless of how she decides, appeals are likely. As it stands, Hoffman has nine days to live.