Ronnie Lee Gardner was the last death row inmate to face the firing squad as a way of being legally executed. Strapped to a chair while five officers opened fire - one officer's Winchester rifle contained dummy wax bullets so the staff will never know whose bullet made its fatal mark - Gardner's execution attracted attention as he became the first to be executed by firing sqad in over 14 years.

Firing squad executions were banned in 2004 but can still take place if the convicted crime dates back to before then. Gardner shot dead a lawyer in a courtroom during a failed escape attempt when he was already on trial for a different murder in 1985.

Gardner ate a last meal of steak, lobster tail, apple pie, vanilla ice cream and 7-Up, before beginning a 48-hour fast while watching 'The Lord of the Rings' film trilogy and reading Divine Justice.

Over the last few centuries however, the firing squad was one of the most widespread methods of execution adopted for crimes ranging from murder to desrertion. The weapons employed range from pistols to rifles and even sub-machine guns.