News & Developments — Texas Executes Abel Ochoa

Texas executed Abel Ochoa on February 6. Ochoa unsuccessfully sought clemency on the grounds that he had shown great remorse for his crime and been rehabilitated. Ochoa had sought a stay of execution alleging that Texas unconstitutionally interfered in the clemency proceedings in his case by preventing him from submitting evidence in support of his clemency application. Although Texas routinely permits members of the media to film death row prisoners for their news stories, Ochoa says that prison officials refused to allow him to film a clemency interview without first obtaining a court order. On February 6, the U.S. Supreme Court declined to review his case and denied his application for stay of execution.

Ochoa was the third person executed in the U.S. in 2020, and the second executed in Texas.