Executions and Stays 2020

62 execution dates were scheduled by 8 states and the Federal Government for 2020.
17 executions were carried out by 5 states and the Federal Government.
19 executions were stayed.
1 execution was halted by commutation.
16 executions were halted by reprieve.
9 warrants were withdrawn/​removed/​rescheduled.



Date of Scheduled ExecutionStatePrisonerOutcome
January
13FederalAlfred BourgeoisPreliminary injunc­tion grant­ed on November 21, 2019 by the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia based on a deter­mi­na­tion that the fed­er­al exe­cu­tion pro­to­col announced in July 2019 vio­lates the fed­er­al death penal­ty statute. Motion to vacate injunc­tion denied on December 2 by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit. Application to vacate injunc­tion denied on December 6 by the U.S. Supreme Court.
15FederalDustin Lee HonkenPreliminary injunc­tion grant­ed on November 21, 2019 by the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia based on a deter­mi­na­tion that the fed­er­al exe­cu­tion pro­to­col announced in July 2019 vio­lates the fed­er­al death penal­ty statute. Motion to vacate injunc­tion denied on December 2 by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit. Application to vacate injunc­tion denied on December 6 by the U.S. Supreme Court.
15OHGeorge BrinkmanLegally pre­ma­ture war­rant. Stay grant­ed by the Ohio Supreme Court on October 9, 2019 to per­mit Brinkman to pur­sue appel­late review of his con­vic­tion and death sen­tence that is guar­an­teed as a mat­ter of Ohio law.†
15OHDenny ObermillerDate removed.†
15TXJohn GardnerExecuted
16OHKareem JacksonReprieve grant­ed by Gov. Mike DeWine on October 30, 2019 and exe­cu­tion resched­uled for September 162020.†
16GAJimmy MedersCommuted to life with­out parole by the Georgia Board of Pardons and Paroles on January 162020.
29GADonnie Cleveland Lance

Executed

JANUARY 20208 exe­cu­tions sched­uled by 3 states and the Federal Government2 exe­cu­tions; 3 death war­rants stayed or enjoined; 1 death sen­tence com­mut­ed; 1 exe­cu­tion halt­ed by reprieve; 1 death war­rant date removed
February
6
TXAbel Ochoa

Executed

12OHLawrence LandrumReprieve grant­ed by Gov. John Kasich on September 1, 2017 and exe­cu­tion resched­uled for December 92021.†
12OHMelvin Bonnell

Reprieve grant­ed by Gov. Mike DeWine on December 20, 2019 and exe­cu­tion resched­uled for March 182021.†

20
TNNicholas Todd SuttonExecuted
FEBRUARY 20204 exe­cu­tions sched­uled by 3 states2 exe­cu­tions; 2 exe­cu­tions halt­ed by reprieves
March
5ALNathaniel WoodsExecuted
11OHAnthony BeltonDate removed.†
11TXCarlos TrevinoRescheduled for June 32020
12OHGregory Lott

Reprieve grant­ed by Gov. Mike DeWine on January 31, 2020 and exe­cu­tion resched­uled for May 272021.†

13PAJordan Clemons

Legally pre­ma­ture war­rant. Stay grant­ed by the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Pennsylvania on February 11, 2020 to per­mit Clemons to pur­sue habeas cor­pus review of his con­vic­tion and death sen­tence that is guar­an­teed as a mat­ter of fed­er­al law.

18TXJohn Hummel

60-day stay grant­ed by the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals on March 16, 2020 in light of the cur­rent health cri­sis and the enor­mous resources need­ed to address that emergency.”

25TXTracy Lane Beatty

60-day stay grant­ed by the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals on March 19, 2020 in light of the cur­rent health cri­sis and the enor­mous resources need­ed to address that emergency.”

MARCH 20207 exe­cu­tions sched­uled by 4 states1 exe­cu­tion; 3 death war­rants stayed; 1 exe­cu­tion halt­ed by reprieve; 2 exe­cu­tion dates removed or rescheduled
April
16TNAbu-Ali Abdur’ RahmanStay grant­ed by Tennessee Supreme Court on December 11, 2019 to deter­mine whether Attorney General has stand­ing to appeal August 30, 2019 tri­al court accep­tance of plea agree­ment resen­tenc­ing Abdur’Rahman to life in prison on August 30, 2019. (Execution date had been resched­uled from April 9, 2020.)
16OHStanley T. AdamsReprieve grant­ed by Gov. John Kasich on September 1, 2017 and exe­cu­tion resched­uled for February 162022 .†
16OHJohn Stumpf

Reprieve grant­ed by Gov. Mike DeWine on January 31, 2020 and exe­cu­tion resched­uled for September 152021.†

23TXFabian Hernandez

60-day stay grant­ed by the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals on April 1, 2020 based on defense motion invok­ing coro­n­avirus health crisis.

29TXBilly Wardlow

Execution resched­uled for July 8, 2020 by order of the tri­al court on April 6, 2020, grant­i­ng a motion by the Morris County District Attorney’s office to resched­ule the exe­cu­tion and deny­ing a motion by the defense to with­draw the death warrant.

APRIL 20205 exe­cu­tions sched­uled by 3 states2 exe­cu­tions halt­ed by reprieve; 2 death war­rants stayed; 1 war­rant rescheduled
May
6TXEdward Busby

60-day stay grant­ed by the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals on April 27, 2020 based on a defense motion invok­ing coro­n­avirus health crisis.

13TXRandall Mays

Stay grant­ed by the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals on May 7, 2020, which remand­ed his case to the tri­al court to review his claim of intel­lec­tu­al disability.

13OHCaron MontgomeryDate removed.†
14OHWarren Keith Henness

Reprieve grant­ed by Gov. Mike DeWine on January 31, 2020 and exe­cu­tion resched­uled for January 122022.†

19MOWalter Barton

Executed. Stay grant­ed by the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Missouri on May 15, 2020, but vacat­ed by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit on May 17.

MAY 20205 exe­cu­tions sched­uled by 3 states

1 exe­cu­tion; 1 exe­cu­tion halt­ed by reprieve; 2 death war­rants stayed; 1 death war­rant removed.

June
2PATam Minh Le

Legally pre­ma­ture war­rant. Stay grant­ed by the Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas on April 22, 2020 to per­mit Le to pur­sue state post-con­vic­tion review of his con­vic­tion and death sen­tence that is guar­an­teed as a mat­ter of Pennsylvania law.

3

TXCarlos Trevino

Execution resched­uled by Bexar County Judicial District Court on April 15, 2020. New exe­cu­tion date is September 302020.

4TNOscar Franklin Smith

Stay grant­ed by the Tennessee Supreme Court on April 17, 2020 and exe­cu­tion resched­uled for February 42021.

16TXRuben Gutierrez

Stay grant­ed by the U.S. Supreme Court on June 16, 2020 to deter­mine whether to review Gutierrez’s peti­tion to review his chal­lenge to Texas’s denial of his request to have a Christian chap­lain accom­pa­ny him in the exe­cu­tion cham­ber. The U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Texas ini­tial­ly grant­ed a stay of exe­cu­tion on June 9. That stay was vacat­ed by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit on June 12.

17OHRomell Broom

Reprieve grant­ed by Gov. Mike DeWine on April 14, 2020 and exe­cu­tion resched­uled for March 162022.†

22PAEric Frein

Legally pre­ma­ture war­rant. Stay grant­ed by the Pike Court of Common Pleas on June 12, 2020 to per­mit Frein to pur­sue state post-con­vic­tion review of his con­vic­tion and death sen­tence that is guar­an­teed as a mat­ter of Pennsylvania law.

JUNE 20206 exe­cu­tions sched­uled by 4 states4 death war­rants stayed; 1 exe­cu­tion halt­ed by reprieve; 1 exe­cu­tion rescheduled.
July
8TXBilly Joe WardlowExecuted
13FederalDaniel Lee

Executed.pre­lim­i­nary injunc­tion was grant­ed by the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia on July 13, 2020 on the pris­on­ers’ chal­lenge to the fed­er­al exe­cu­tion pro­to­col. Motion to vacate injunc­tion denied by U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit after 10:00 p.m. on July 13 but was VACATED by a 5 – 4 vote of the U.S. Supreme Court at 2:30 a.m. on July 14.

The gov­ern­ment attempt­ed to car­ry out the exe­cu­tion at 4:00 a.m., but coun­sel noti­fied the Bureau of Prisons of a December 2019 stay from an Arkansas fed­er­al dis­trict court that was still in effect. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit vacat­ed that stay at 6:36 a.m. Central/7:36 a.m. Eastern and Lee was exe­cut­ed with­out notice to coun­sel less than a half-hour later.

An ear­li­er pre­lim­i­nary injunc­tion grant­ed on July 10, 2020 by the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Indiana based on the vic­tims’ fam­i­ly’s request to post­pone the exe­cu­tion because of the COVID-19 pan­dem­ic was vacat­ed by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit on July 12 and the U.S. Supreme Court on July 14 declined to stay the exe­cu­tion to per­mit an appeal.

15OHNathaniel JacksonDate removed.†
15FederalWesley Purkey

Executed. At around 3:00 a.m. on July 16, 2020, the U.S. Supreme Court vacat­ed by a 5 – 4 vote a pre­lim­i­nary injunc­tion the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia had grant­ed on July 15, 2020 on Purkey’s chal­lenge to his com­pe­ten­cy to be exe­cut­ed. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit had declined to vacate the injunction.

At the same time, the U.S. Supreme Court also vacat­ed a sec­ond pre­lim­i­nary injunc­tion grant­ed by the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia on July 15, 2020 on claims raised in the pris­on­ers’ chal­lenge to the fed­er­al exe­cu­tion pro­to­col. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit also had declined to vacate that injunction.

On July 15, the U.S. Supreme Court vot­ed 5 – 4 to vacatetem­po­rary stay of exe­cu­tion that the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit had grant­ed on July 2, 2022 pend­ing the issuance of th[e] court’s man­date or as spec­i­fied in any sub­se­quent order that is issued.”

A pre­lim­i­nary injunc­tion was grant­ed by the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia on July 13, 2020 on the pris­on­ers’ chal­lenge to the fed­er­al exe­cu­tion pro­to­col. A motion to vacate the injunc­tion was denied by U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit on July 13, 2020. A sec­ond motion to vacate the injunc­tion was grant­ed by the U.S. Supreme Court around 2:30 a.m. on July 14 on a 5 – 4 vote.

16OHJohn Hanna

Reprieve grant­ed by Gov. Mike DeWine on April 14, 2020 and exe­cu­tion resched­uled for May 182022.†

17FederalDustin Honken

Executed.

At around 3:00 a.m. on July 16, 2020, the U.S. Supreme Court vacat­edpre­lim­i­nary injunc­tion grant­ed by the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia on July 15, 2020 on claims raised in the pris­on­ers’ chal­lenge to the fed­er­al exe­cu­tion pro­to­col. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit had declined to vacate that injunc­tion.

A pri­or pre­lim­i­nary injunc­tion had been grant­ed by the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia on July 13, 2020 on oth­er issues in the pris­on­ers’ chal­lenge to the fed­er­al exe­cu­tion pro­to­col. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit on July 13, 2020 denied the gov­ern­men­t’s motion to vacate that injunc­tion. However, around 2:30 a.m. on July 14, the U.S. Supreme Court grant­ed a sec­ond motion to vacate the injunction.

28PALeeton Thomas

Legally pre­ma­ture war­rant. Stay grant­ed by the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania on June 30, 2020 to per­mit Thomas to pur­sue habeas cor­pus review of his con­vic­tion and death sen­tence that is guar­an­teed as a mat­ter of fed­er­al law.

JULY 20207 exe­cu­tions sched­uled by 3 states and the fed­er­al government4 exe­cu­tions; 1 death war­rant stayed; 1 exe­cu­tion date removed; 1 exe­cu­tion halt­ed by reprieve.
August
4TNHarold Wayne NicholsReprieve grant­ed by Gov. Bill Lee on July 172020.
12OHDouglas Coley

Reprieve grant­ed by Gov. Mike DeWine on April 14, 2020 and exe­cu­tion resched­uled for July 202022.†

26FederalLezmond MitchellExecuted.
28FederalKeith Nelson

Executed. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit on August 27, 2020 vacat­ed an injunc­tion entered ear­li­er in the day by the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia based on Nelson’s argu­ment that the fed­er­al pro­to­col vio­lat­ed the require­ments of the Federal Food & Drug Act. The District Court on August 28 denied Nelson’s motion to enter addi­tion­al find­ings and issue a new order.

At around 3:00 a.m. on July 16, 2020, the U.S. Supreme Court vacat­edpre­lim­i­nary injunc­tion grant­ed by the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia on July 15, 2020 on claims raised in the pris­on­ers’ chal­lenge to the fed­er­al exe­cu­tion pro­to­col. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit had declined to vacate that injunction.

A pri­or pre­lim­i­nary injunc­tion had been grant­ed by the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia on July 13, 2020 on oth­er issues in the pris­on­ers’ chal­lenge to the fed­er­al exe­cu­tion pro­to­col. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit on July 13, 2020 denied the gov­ern­men­t’s motion to vacate that injunc­tion. However, around 2:30 a.m. on July 14, the U.S. Supreme Court grant­ed a sec­ond motion to vacate the injunction.

AUGUST 20204 exe­cu­tions sched­uled by 2 states and the fed­er­al government2 exe­cu­tions; 2 exe­cu­tions halt­ed by reprieve
September
9TXJohn Ramirez

Warrant with­drawn

16OHKareem Jackson

Reprieve grant­ed by Gov. Mike DeWine on June 5, 2020 and exe­cu­tion resched­uled for September 152022.†

17OHJohn DrummondReprieve grant­ed by Gov. John Kasich on September 1, 2017 and exe­cu­tion resched­uled for April 212022.†
24FederalWilliam LeCroy

Executed

26Feder­alChristopher Andre VialvaExecuted
30TXCarlos TrevinoExecution date with­drawn by the Bexar County District Court on September 15, 2020 due to the cur­rent COVID-19 con­di­tions in Texas.” A hear­ing to reset the exe­cu­tion date has been sched­uled for March 52021.
SEPTEMBER 20206 exe­cu­tions sched­uled by 2 states and the fed­er­al government2 exe­cu­tions; 2 exe­cu­tions halt­ed by reprieve; 2 war­rants withdrawn.
October
8TNByron Black

Stay grant­ed by the Tennessee Supreme Court on June 12, 2020 because of the coro­n­avirus impact on lit­i­ga­tion and exe­cu­tion resched­uled for April 82021.

14OHStanley Fitzpatrick

Reprieve grant­ed by Gov. Mike DeWine on June 5, 2020 and exe­cu­tion resched­uled for February 152023.†

OCTOBER 20202 exe­cu­tions sched­uled in 2 states1 exe­cu­tion halt­ed by reprieve; 1 death war­rant stayed.
November
18OHAnthony SowellLegally pre­ma­ture war­rant. Stay grant­ed by the Ohio Supreme Court on January 5, 2017 pend­ing dis­po­si­tion of avail­able state reme­dies” to per­mit Sowell to pur­sue appel­late and post-con­vic­tion review of his con­vic­tion and death sen­tence that is guar­an­teed as a mat­ter of Ohio law.†
19FederalOrlando HallExecuted

NOVEMBER 2020

2 exe­cu­tions sched­uled by 1 state and the fed­er­al government1 exe­cu­tion; 1 death war­rant stayed
December
3TNPervis Payne

Reprieve grant­ed by Gov. Bill Lee on November 6, 2020 until April 92021.

4SCRichard Moore

Stay grant­ed by the South Carolina Supreme Court on November 30, 2020 because the South Carolina Department of Corrections does not have, and will not be able to obtain, the drugs required for exe­cu­tion by lethal injec­tion by December 42020.”

8FederalLisa MontgomeryTemporary stay grant­ed by the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia on November 18, 2020 based on the denial of mean­ing­ful access to clemen­cy and the aban­don­ment by coun­sel result­ing from coun­sel’s con­tract­ing COVID-19. Execution resched­uled for January 122021.
9OHDavid Sneed

Reprieve grant­ed by Gov. Mike DeWine on June 5, 2020 and exe­cu­tion resched­uled for April 192023.†

10FederalBrandon Bernard

Executed

11FederalAlfred BourgeoisExecuted
DECEMBER 20206 exe­cu­tions sched­uled by 3 states and the fed­er­al government2 exe­cu­tions; 2 exe­cu­tions halt­ed by reprieve; 2 exe­cu­tion stayed

† On February 19, 2019, Ohio Governor Mike DeWine stat­ed that the state would not car­ry out any exe­cu­tions until it devised a new exe­cu­tion pro­to­col that was approved by the courts. However, he did not for­mal­ly halt the exe­cu­tions sched­uled in the state.

2020 Death Warrant Outcomes Nationally, by Month



MonthScheduled
Executions
ExecutionsStayed by Courts*CommutationsReprievesDied on
Death Row
RescheduledDate Removed or
Warrant Withdrawn
Total

62

17

19

1

16

0

3

6

January

8

2

3

1

1

0

0

1

February

4

2

0

0

2

0

0

0

March

7

1

3

0

1

0

1

1

April

5

0

2

0

2

0

1

0

May

5

1

2

0

1

0

0

1

June

6

0401010
July7410100

0

August4

2

00

2

00

1

September

6

2

002

0

02
October20

1

01000
November

2

1

100000
December6

2

20

2

000
2020 Death Warrant Outcomes by Jurisdiction



StateScheduled
Executions
ExecutionsStayed by Courts*CommutationsReprievesDied on
Death Row
RescheduledDate Removed or
Warrant Withdrawn
TOTALS

62

17

19

1

16

0

3

6

Ohio200

2

0

14

004
Texas

14

3

6000

3

2
Federal Government13

10

300000
Tennessee

6

1

3

0200

0

Pennsylvania40

4

0000

0

Georgia2

1

010000
Alabama11000000
Missouri11000000
South Carolina10100000