List of individuals executed in Texas
Encyclopedia
The list of people executed by the U.S. state
of Texas
, with the exception of 1819-1849, is divided into periods of ten years. Since 1819, 1,228 individuals (all but six of whom have been men) have been executed in Texas . Between 1819 and 1923, 390 people were executed by hanging
in the county where the trial took place. During the American Civil War
, three Confederate
deserters
and a man convicted of attempted rape
were executed by firing squad. The law was changed in 1923 requiring executions to be carried out in the electric chair
at the Huntsville Unit in Huntsville, Texas
. From 1924 to 1964, 361 people were executed in this way.
After an eighteen-year gap, executions were resumed following new capital punishment laws passed by the State of Texas, among them changing the method of execution to lethal injection
. Since 1982, 477 individuals (all of whom were convicted of murder
) have been executed
by lethal injection
at the Huntsville Unit. The number is four times as many as Virginia (the state with the second-highest total of executions in the post-Gregg era) and over 36 times as many as California (the state with the largest number of death row inmates; California has not executed anyone since January 2006).
U.S. state
A U.S. state is any one of the 50 federated states of the United States of America that share sovereignty with the federal government. Because of this shared sovereignty, an American is a citizen both of the federal entity and of his or her state of domicile. Four states use the official title of...
of Texas
Texas
Texas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...
, with the exception of 1819-1849, is divided into periods of ten years. Since 1819, 1,228 individuals (all but six of whom have been men) have been executed in Texas . Between 1819 and 1923, 390 people were executed by hanging
Hanging
Hanging is the lethal suspension of a person by a ligature. The Oxford English Dictionary states that hanging in this sense is "specifically to put to death by suspension by the neck", though it formerly also referred to crucifixion and death by impalement in which the body would remain...
in the county where the trial took place. During the American Civil War
American Civil War
The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...
, three Confederate
Confederate States of America
The Confederate States of America was a government set up from 1861 to 1865 by 11 Southern slave states of the United States of America that had declared their secession from the U.S...
deserters
Desertion
In military terminology, desertion is the abandonment of a "duty" or post without permission and is done with the intention of not returning...
and a man convicted of attempted rape
Rape
Rape is a type of sexual assault usually involving sexual intercourse, which is initiated by one or more persons against another person without that person's consent. The act may be carried out by physical force, coercion, abuse of authority or with a person who is incapable of valid consent. The...
were executed by firing squad. The law was changed in 1923 requiring executions to be carried out in the electric chair
Electric chair
Execution by electrocution, usually performed using an electric chair, is an execution method originating in the United States in which the condemned person is strapped to a specially built wooden chair and electrocuted through electrodes placed on the body...
at the Huntsville Unit in Huntsville, Texas
Huntsville, Texas
Huntsville is a city in and the county seat of Walker County, Texas, United States. The population was 35,508 at the 2010 census. It is the center of the Huntsville micropolitan area....
. From 1924 to 1964, 361 people were executed in this way.
After an eighteen-year gap, executions were resumed following new capital punishment laws passed by the State of Texas, among them changing the method of execution to lethal injection
Lethal injection
Lethal injection is the practice of injecting a person with a fatal dose of drugs for the express purpose of causing the immediate death of the subject. The main application for this procedure is capital punishment, but the term may also be applied in a broad sense to euthanasia and suicide...
. Since 1982, 477 individuals (all of whom were convicted of murder
Murder
Murder is the unlawful killing, with malice aforethought, of another human being, and generally this state of mind distinguishes murder from other forms of unlawful homicide...
) have been executed
Capital punishment
Capital punishment, the death penalty, or execution is the sentence of death upon a person by the state as a punishment for an offence. Crimes that can result in a death penalty are known as capital crimes or capital offences. The term capital originates from the Latin capitalis, literally...
by lethal injection
Lethal injection
Lethal injection is the practice of injecting a person with a fatal dose of drugs for the express purpose of causing the immediate death of the subject. The main application for this procedure is capital punishment, but the term may also be applied in a broad sense to euthanasia and suicide...
at the Huntsville Unit. The number is four times as many as Virginia (the state with the second-highest total of executions in the post-Gregg era) and over 36 times as many as California (the state with the largest number of death row inmates; California has not executed anyone since January 2006).
Executions from 1819
- 1819–1849: 9 executions
- 1850–1859: 18 executions
- 1860–1869: 16 executions
- 1870–1879: 50 executions
- 1880–1889: 64 executions
- 1890–1899: 101 executions
- 1900–1909: 71 executions
- 1910–1919: 51 executions
- 1920–1929: 66 executions
- 1930–1939: 122 executions
- 1940–1949: 78 executions
- 1950–1959: 76 executions
- 1960–1964: 29 executions
- 1982–1989: 33 executions
- 1990–1999: 166 executions
- 2000–2009: 248 executions
- Since 2010: 30 executions
See also
- Capital punishment in the United StatesCapital punishment in the United StatesCapital punishment in the United States, in practice, applies only for aggravated murder and more rarely for felony murder. Capital punishment was a penalty at common law, for many felonies, and was enforced in all of the American colonies prior to the Declaration of Independence...
- Capital punishment in TexasCapital punishment in TexasCapital punishment has been used in the U.S. state of Texas and its predecessor entities since 1819.As of 16 November 2011, 1,228 individuals have been executed. Only Virginia has executed more individuals overall; however, since the death penalty was re-instituted in the United States in the...