Two death row inmates executed in Alabama, Florida
An Alabama man who murdered his girlfriend was put to death by nitrogen gas on Tuesday, with another man executed by lethal injection in the US state of Florida.
Gregory Hunt, 65, was pronounced dead at 6:26 p.m. Central Time (2323 GMT) at the Alabama state prison in Atmore.
He was executed by nitrogen hypoxia, which involves pumping nitrogen gas into a facemask, causing the prisoner to suffocate.
It was the fifth execution in the southern US state using nitrogen gas, which has been denounced by UN experts as cruel and inhumane.
Only one other US state, Louisiana, has used this method.
Hunt was convicted of the 1988 rape and murder of 32-year-old Karen Lane, whom he had been dating for a month.
In Florida, Anthony Wainwright, 54, was put to death by lethal injection at 6:22 p.m. Eastern Time (2222 GMT) at the Florida state prison in Raiford.
Wainwright was convicted of the 1994 rape and murder of Carmen Gayheart, a 23-year-old nursing student and mother of two young children.
Wainwright and an accomplice, Richard Hamilton, abducted Gayheart three days after escaping from a prison in North Carolina.
Hamilton was also sentenced to death for Gayheart's murder but died in prison.
A third execution this week is scheduled to take place on Thursday in Oklahoma, where John Hanson, 61, is to be put to death for the 1999 kidnapping and murder of Mary Bowles, 77.
Hanson's execution has been temporarily put on hold by a judge amid claims his rights were violated during a clemency hearing.
Oklahoma Attorney General Gentner Drummond has asked an appeals court to lift the stay to allow the execution to go ahead.
The fourth execution this week is to be carried out in South Carolina, where Stephen Stanko, 57, is to be put to death by lethal injection.
Stanko was convicted of the 2005 murders of his girlfriend, 43-year-old Laura Ling, and Henry Turner, a 74-year-old friend.
There have been 21 executions in the United States this year: 16 by lethal injection, two by firing squad, and three using nitrogen gas.
The death penalty has been abolished in 23 of the 50 US states, while three others—California, Oregon, and Pennsylvania—have moratoriums in place.
President Donald Trump is a proponent of capital punishment and called on his first day in office for an expansion of its use 'for the vilest crimes.'
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Al Arabiya
5 hours ago
- Al Arabiya
Mexican citizen dies in US immigration detention center
A Mexican citizen died in a US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) detention center from undetermined circumstances, Mexico's foreign ministry has said. The death comes amid ongoing demonstrations in several US states, most prominently in California, against immigration enforcement raids launched by US President Donald Trump's administration. The man died on June 7 at an ICE facility in the southern state of Georgia, where he was being held after he was transferred from a state prison, the foreign ministry said in a statement Thursday. US authorities notified the Mexican consulate in Georgia's capital Atlanta of the death. 'Consular staff has established communication with local and ICE authorities, as well as with the individual's family members, to clarify the facts, confirm the official cause of death, and provide legal advice and support to the family,' the ministry said. Mexico's foreign ministry said consular staff had not been notified to interview the detainee while he was in custody, despite regular visits to the facility to assist Mexican nationals. 'The consulate has requested an explanation from the (detention) center's authorities,' the ministry said. It also said it was examining legal options and maintaining communication with the Georgia Bureau of Investigation, the state's independent investigative body.
Arab News
7 hours ago
- Arab News
Mexican citizen dies in US immigration detention center
MEXICO CITY: A Mexican citizen died in a US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) detention center from undetermined circumstances, Mexico's foreign ministry has said. The death comes amid ongoing demonstrations in several US states, most prominently in California, against immigration enforcement raids launched by US President Donald Trump's administration. The man died on June 7 at an ICE facility in the southern state of Georgia, where he was being held after he was transferred from a state prison, the foreign ministry said in a statement Thursday. US authorities notified the Mexican consulate in Georgia's capital Atlanta of the death. 'Consular staff has established communication with local and ICE authorities, as well as with the individual's family members, to clarify the facts, confirm the official cause of death, and provide legal advice and support to the family,' the ministry said. Mexico's foreign ministry said consular staff had not been notified to interview the detainee while he was in custody, despite regular visits to the facility to assist Mexican nationals. 'The consulate has requested an explanation from the (detention) center's authorities,' the ministry said. It also said it was examining legal options and maintaining communication with the Georgia Bureau of Investigation, the state's independent investigative body.
Al Arabiya
9 hours ago
- Al Arabiya
Judge blocks Trump's use of National Guard in protest-hit Los Angeles
President Donald Trump will be 'relieved of his command' of the California National Guard after a judge ruled his deployment of them to protest-hit Los Angeles was 'illegal,' Governor Gavin Newsom said Thursday as he notched a victory in his state's growing standoff with the White House. Sporadic but spectacular violence that has rocked Los Angeles over days of demonstrations against immigration raids fell 'far short' of the 'rebellion' the president described to justify his extraordinary decision to send in the reserve force, US District Judge Charles Breyer ruled. Trump's actions 'were illegal... He must therefore return control' of the guardsmen to Newsom, Breyer said in the 36-page opinion. He stayed his order until 12:00 p.m. local time (1900 GMT) Friday, and the White House swiftly launched an appeal that could go all the way to the Supreme Court. But Newsom was quick to celebrate the victory – a much-needed win in just one of several fronts that the wealthy, Democratic state is currently fighting against the White House. 'Donald Trump will be relieved of his command at noon tomorrow,' Newsom said in televised comments after the ruling was issued. 'He is not a monarch, he is not a king, and he should stop acting like one,' the 57-year-old Democrat said. Protests over the immigration crackdown ordered by the Trump administration first began in Los Angeles on Friday, and were largely confined to just a few blocks of the sprawling city. Damages include vandalism, looting, clashes with law enforcement and several torched driverless taxis. Trump, who has repeatedly exaggerated the scale of the unrest, deployed 4,000 National Guard troops and 700 US Marines to Los Angeles despite the objections of local officials, claiming that the city was 'burning' and local officials had lost control. It was the first time since 1965 that a US president deployed the National Guard over the wishes of a state's governor. Critics have accused Trump of a power grab. But he has been unrepentant, taking credit Thursday for making Los Angeles 'safe' and declaring that Newsom – a contender for the Democratic presidential nomination in 2028 – had 'totally lost control.' Anger at Trump's crackdown and the use of masked, armed immigration agents, backed by uniformed soldiers, is rousing protests in other cities. The ruling came after California's standoff with the administration ratcheted up earlier Thursday, when a sitting US senator was handcuffed and forcibly removed from a press conference on the immigration raids. The shocking incident was slammed by furious Democrats who said it 'reeks of totalitarianism.' Video footage shows California Senator Alex Padilla, a Democrat, being pushed from the room at a federal building in Los Angeles as he tried to ask Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem about the raids. 'I'm Senator Alex Padilla. I have questions for the secretary,' he said as two men grappled with him in front of journalists, including from AFP. Footage filmed by Padilla's staff outside the room shows the senator being pushed to the ground and handcuffed. 'If this is how this administration responds to a senator with a question... you can only imagine what they're doing to farm workers, to cooks, to day laborers out in the Los Angeles community,' Padilla said later. The incident 'reeks of totalitarianism,' Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer said, calling for an investigation. The White House hit back, claiming it was a 'theater-kid stunt' and claiming without evidence that Padilla 'lunged toward Secretary Noem.' California also sued Trump's administration Thursday over his move to scrap the state's tailpipe emission rules and its drive to phase out gas-powered cars. Trump was elected last year after promising to launch historic mass deportations. But with his mounting crackdown rippling through industries heavily reliant on immigrant labor, Trump said he had heard employers' complaints and hinted at a forthcoming policy shift. 'We're going to have an order on that pretty soon, I think. We can't do that to our farmers – and leisure too, hotels,' he said. Breyer's ruling on the National Guard came two days ahead of the nationwide 'No Kings' protests expected on Saturday, the same day Trump attends a highly unusual military parade in the US capital. The parade, featuring warplanes and tanks, has been organized to celebrate the 250th anniversary of the founding of the US Army but also happens to be on the day of Trump's 79th birthday.
