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For the longest time, that's exactly what I thought also, but now I'm pretty sure it's the other way around. Which it does make sense if you think about it. They all still have the option of believing they were the one with the blank, but also it ensures there will be a kill shot. If only 1 person had a live bullet, he might slightly miss the specific target location.
It is why only one live bullet is given in a firing squad.
Sometimes, one or more soldiers of the firing squad may be issued a rifle containing a blank cartridge.[2][3] In such cases, soldiers of the firing squad are not told beforehand whether they are using live ammunition. This is believed to reinforce the sense of diffusion of responsibility among the firing squad members.
en.wikipedia.org...
The five executioners, certified police officers who remain anonymous, stood about 25 feet (7.6 meters) away and shot from behind a black curtain and through a brick wall cut with a gun port, or a special opening for the firearms. Of the five guns, one was loaded with a blank so that no one would be able to determine who fired the fatal shot.
www.livescience.com...