‘The Condemned 8’

‘The Condemned 8’

Death row inmates’ appeal of lethal injection protocols fails

ralphhardin@gmail.com On Sept. 8, 2015, following a request by state Attorney General Leslie Rutledge, Gov. Asa Huchinson filed to set execution dates for eight Arkansas death row inmates, all of whom were convicted by Arkansas juries and sentenced to death. Following a series of legal manuvers contesting the executions culminating in last week’s decision by the state Supreme Court that the state’s method of carrying out capital punishment via lethal injection was valid, it is assumed that Hutchinson will set the execution dates again, in an order according to the date of conviction for each inmate.

The crimes for which the inmates received their death sentences occurred, in some cases, more than 25 years ago. Execution dates expected to be set in the near future (those eight originally set last year) are:

Bruce Earl Ward — convicted of the August 11, 1989, murder of Rebecca Doss of Little Rock.

Don William Davis —

convicted of the Oct. 12, 1990, murder of Jane Daniel of Rogers.

Terrick Terrell Nooner

— convicted of the March 16, 1993, murder of Scot Stobaugh of Little Rock.

Stacey Eugene Johnson

— convicted in Sevier County of the April 1, 1993, murder of Carol Heath of DeQueen.

Marcel Wayne Williams

— convicted of the Nov.

20, 1994, murder of Stacy Errickson of Jacksonville.

Jack Harold Jones, Jr.—

convicted of capital murder and sentenced to death for the June 6, 1995, murder of Mary Phillips of Searcy.

Jason McGehee — convicted of the Aug. 19, 1996 for the murder of John Melbourne, Jr., of Harrison.

Kenneth Williams

— convicted of the Oct. 3, 1999, murder of Cecil Boren of Grady.

There are currently a total of 34 death row inmates in

By Ralph Hardin