'''Hanging''' is the suspension of a person by the [[neck]] by a looped [[rope]] or other cord. It is a common form of [[capital punishment|execution]] throughout history, as well as a common means of [[suicide]].
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'''Hanging''' is the suspension of a person by the [[neck]] by a looped [[rope]] or other cord. It is a common form of [[capital punishment|execution]] throughout history, as well as a common means of [[suicide]]. Although it is still used in some countries, in the [[United States]], it has declined in use throughout the 20th century after other means of execution, such as the electric chair, gas chamber, and more recently, [[lethal injection]], became more prevalent. The last person to be legally hanged in the United States was Billy Bailey in [[Delaware]] in 1996, and he will almost certainly be the last.