During the execution, Harding thrashed and struggled violently against the restraining straps. A television journalist who witnessed the execution, Cameron Harper, said that Harding's spasms and jerks lasted 6 minutes and 37 seconds (Howe). "Obviously, this man was suffering. This was a violent death an ugly event. We put animals to death more humanely" (Howe). Another witness, newspaper reporter Carla McClain, said, "Harding's death was extremely violent. He was in great pain. I heard him gasp and moan. I saw his body turn from red to purple" (Howe). .
Rarely performed in modern times is the method of hanging. Documented accounts for botched modern hangings do not exist due to the few amounts of hangings performed since 1976. "The Corrections Professional," a periodical for correctional institutions and their employees, gives details of what could happen if a hanging is not performed correctly. If the inmate has strong neck muscles, is very light, if the "drop" is too short, or the noose has been wrongly positioned, the fracture-dislocation is not rapid and death results from slow asphyxiation ("Executions- 23). If this occurs the face becomes engorged, the tongue protrudes, the eyes pop, the body defecates, and violent movements of the limbs occur ("Executions- 23). One can only imagine what it was like in the past when hangings weren't regulated. .
Seen to be the most controversial method of the death penalty is electrocution. In one of the most famous accounts of electrocution gone wrong is that of Florida's own Jessie Joseph Tafero. On May 4th of 1990 Tafero was strapped into the notorious chair that is widely know as "Old Sparky." The switch was thrown and 2000 volts of electricity surged though his body. During the execution, six-inch flames erupted from Tafero's head, and three jolts of power were required to stop his breathing. State officials claimed that the botched execution was caused by, "inadvertent human error," the inappropriate substitution of a synthetic sponge for a natural sponge that had been used in previous executions (Barnett).