HUNTSVILLE, Texas — A Texas man who fatally shot a convenience store clerk was put to death Wednesday night, becoming the 30th person executed in the United States this year and the first since Tennessee’s failed attempt to administer a lethal injection to Christa Pike a week ago.
Jamaal Howard, 46, was pronounced dead at 8:03 p.m. after receiving a fatal dose of pentobarbital at Huntsville State Prison. He was convicted of killing 42-year-old Vickie Swartout during a 2000 store robbery captured on surveillance video.
Asked by the warden if he had a closing statement, Howard apologized profusely to some of his victim’s family members, who were watching through a window just feet from the death chamber.
“I hope you accept my apology and I want your forgiveness,” he said shortly before the injection began. “I’m sorry for what happened. I wish you could learn to forgive me one of these days.”
He also thanked his friends and family and said he loved them, adding that he was “in a good frame of mind to find peace and the Lord, so I thank you all.” He concluded with: “Hey, enjoy life and peace to all.”
The man took a few breaths and gasped as the drugs began to flow
As the pentobarbital began to take effect, Howard took a few breaths and panted. He then began to snore, cough and resume snoring, each time the sound became quieter. In about 30 seconds all movement stopped.
He was pronounced dead 19 minutes later.
Her sister was among the witnesses watching through a window from an adjacent room and became distraught, repeatedly exclaiming, “Get me out of here.” » Prison officers helped her out of the witness room.
Texas has already executed six people in 2026 and plans two more executions later this year.
Earlier Wednesday, Howard’s lawyers unsuccessfully tried to block the execution by arguing that he suffered from an intellectual disability and faced risks similar to those in Pike’s case because both states used pentobarbital for lethal injections.
Pike’s lawyers continue to seek more information about what happened after the 50-year-old survived two doses of pentobarbital on September 30. Her lawyers said she was unconscious in hospital after the attempt, but was awake and speaking Tuesday.
Inmate remained ‘talkative’ during journey to death chamber
Earlier Wednesday, Howard was “talkative” during the 45-mile ride from the death row prison to the Huntsville unit, where executions take place, said Amanda Hernandez, a spokeswoman for the Texas Department of Criminal Justice.
“He had small conversations with the police throughout the trip” before being taken to a holding cell near the death chamber, she said. “He asked questions and was very engaged in the process. »
Murder of store employee caught on surveillance video
Howard was convicted of capital murder for the killing of Swartout, who was shot in the chest during the robbery. Evidence presented at trial included surveillance video showing Howard shooting Swartout.
Howard, who was 20 at the time, took $114 and a carton of cigarettes from a store in Silsbee, a small rural town about 100 miles northeast of Houston, according to court records.
A wave of late appeals failed to stop the execution
In an effort to stop Howard’s execution, his lawyers had filed a motion hours earlier in the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals, raising concerns about the quality of Texas’ execution drugs. The court rejected that request and a second case involving the drugs, without comment.
His lawyers also unsuccessfully argued before the U.S. Supreme Court that Howard’s execution should be halted because of his intellectual disability. In 2002, the Supreme Court banned the execution of people with intellectual disabilities, while granting states some latitude in determining these disabilities.
The state told the court that Howard’s attorneys failed to present evidence showing he met the requirements for an intellectual disability claim.
The High Court on Wednesday refused to intervene, without comment, paving the way for the execution.
Florida leads the nation in executions this year
Florida has carried out 16 executions so far this year, the most of any state. Most states that allow executions use lethal injection as their primary method.
Republican Tennessee Governor Bill Lee has suspended the last execution scheduled to take place in his state this year.
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