Mississippi: Edwin Hart Turner's execution temporarily halted by federal judge

Edwin Hart Turner

A federal judge on Monday temporarily halted the scheduled execution of a convicted murderer in Mississippi in order to allow attorneys to argue whether the state has improperly kept him from getting a psychiatric evaluation.

Edwin Hart Turner, 38, who was convicted of murdering two people during convenience store robberies in 1995, was set to die by lethal injection on Wednesday.

In an order on Monday, U.S. District Court Judge Carlton W. Reeves postponed Turner's execution until at least February 20.

Last week, Turner's attorney filed a court brief accusing the Mississippi Department of Corrections of improperly preventing a psychiatrist from evaluating Turner.

Attorney James Craig of the Louisiana Capital Assistance Center said in the court filing that important information that related to Turner's mental health wasn't presented during his trial.

Craig said Turner had a "long and extensive" history of mental illness. The U.S. Supreme Court has ruled that executing mentally retarded people is cruel and unusual punishment. Turner is asking the Supreme Court to extend that ruling to the mentally ill.

Turner was sentenced to death for killing Eddie Brooks and Everett Curry in 2 separate incidents in Carroll County, Mississippi on the same day in 1995.

Before the murders, a suicide attempt had left Turner's face disfigured. Witnesses identified him at 1 of the crime scenes by a towel he wore around his head to hide his disfigurement.

An accomplice, Paul M. Stewart, confessed to the crimes and testified against Turner. Stewart was convicted of 2 counts of capital murder and sentenced to 2 consecutive life terms in prison.

A spokeswoman for Attorney General Jim Hood said he had not yet reviewed the court order postponing the execution and would only comment on the case through court filings.

Source: Reuters, Feb.7, 2012

Mississippi execution is temporarily blocked by judge

A federal judge on Monday temporarily blocked the execution of a Mississippi inmate who killed two men during a robbery spree in 1995. The man's attorneys asked for the order, not arguing guilt or innocence, but that Edwin Hart Turner is mentally ill and should not be executed.

Condemned inmate Edwin Hart Turner has asked a federal judge to halt his scheduled Feb. 8 execution until he can get a mental examination. U.S. District Judge Carlton Reeves will conduct a hearing Friday in Jackson on Turner's request.

U.S. District Judge Carlton Reeves ordered the Mississippi Department of Corrections to allow Turner to be seen by a psychiatrist of his choosing.

James Craig with the Louisiana Capital Assistance Center argues that a Mississippi Department of Corrections policy prohibited Turner from getting tests that could prove he's mentally ill. Craig said the policy, which dates to the 1990s, violates prisoners' rights to have access to courts and other materials that can help them develop evidence.

The policy requires court orders for medical experts or others to visit and test inmates. Craig said the right tests would show Turner is mentally ill.

Mississippi Attorney General Jim Hood has said Turner's lawyers are bringing up old arguments that have been rejected by the courts before.

"We argue that his mental health claims have been fully addressed, and that this present action is nothing more than an attempt to re-litigate a claim that has been properly adjudicated at every turn," Hood said in a statement.

Mississippi is 1 of 10 states that permit someone who suffered from serious mental illness at the time of the offense to be executed, according to a petition filed with the U.S. Supreme Court. Turner's lawyers want the Court to prohibit the execution of mentally ill people the way it did inmates considered mentally retarded.

There's little dispute that Turner killed the men then went home and had a meal of shrimp and cinnamon rolls before going to sleep. He's scheduled to die by injection Wednesday.

His attorneys have filed 2 separate petitions that seek to stop the execution, 1 with the U.S. Supreme Court and the other 1 in federal court in Jackson.

Turner's lawyers argue that Turner inherited a serious mental illness. His father is thought to have committed suicide by shooting a gun into a shed filled with dynamite and his grandmother and great-grandmother both spent time in the state mental hospital.

Craig said in a telephone interview Monday that Turner had spent 3 months in the Mississippi State Hospital at Whitfield after slitting his wrists in 1995. He had been out about 6 weeks before the killings occurred.

Turner, 38, was convicted of killing the 2 men while robbing gas stations with his friend, Paul Murrell Stewart, in a spree that netted about $400. Stewart, who was 17 at the time, testified against Turner and was sentenced to life in prison.

Craig said Turner was diagnosed with depression that year and given the antidepressant medication Prozac. Craig believes Turner was misdiagnosed and that Prozac compounded his problems.

"If the folks at Whitfield knew then what we know now, I feel confident they wouldn't have released him with 40 milligrams of Prozac," Craig said.

Source: Associated Press, Feb. 7, 2012

Comments

Japan | High court rejects retrial appeal over 1992 Fukuoka child murder

The Fukuoka High Court rejected an appeal on Monday for a retrial for the 1992 murder of two 7-year-old girls in the city of Iizuka in Fukuoka Prefecture, for which a death row convict was executed. The defense plans to file a special appeal with the Supreme Court against the decision. In what's known as the Iizuka incident, despite the assertion of his innocence, Michitoshi Kuma's death sentence became final in 2006 based on DNA test results and eyewitness accounts. He was executed at the age of 70 in 2008. The defendant's side submitted in the second round of its retrial request a woman's testimony as new evidence.

Oklahoma executes Kendrick Antonio Simpson

McALESTER, Okla. (DPN) — Oklahoma executed Kendrick Antonio Simpson on Thursday for the 2006 drive-by shooting deaths of two men following a dispute at an Oklahoma City nightclub, marking the state's first lethal injection of the year and the nation's third. Simpson, 45, was pronounced dead at 10:19 a.m. at the Oklahoma State Penitentiary after receiving a three-drug cocktail, prison officials said. He had been convicted of first-degree murder in the killings of Anthony Jones, 19, and Glen Palmer, 20, who were shot while sitting in a car outside the club. Simpson admitted to firing into the vehicle, later telling authorities he was "compelled by paranoia."

Oklahoma | Judge weighs Richard Glossip's second request for bond

Attorneys for former death row inmate Richard Glossip are again asking an Oklahoma County judge to release him on bond while he awaits a third trial in a high-profile murder case that has stretched nearly three decades. District Judge Natalie Mai heard arguments for and against Glossip’s release in her courtroom Thursday, Feb. 12. Glossip, 63, has been twice convicted and sentenced to death for the 1997 killing of Oklahoma City hotel owner Barry Van Treese. Prosecutors claim Glossip paid another employee, Justin Sneed, to kill Van Treese, and helped cover up the murder.

Iran | Teenage Protester Saleh Mohammadi Sentenced to Public Hanging

Iran Human Rights (IHRNGO); 12 February 2026: Saleh Mohammadi, a teenage protester and wrestler, has been sentenced to qisas (retribution-in-kind) for the murder of a policeman during the 8 January protest in Qom. The court rejected Saleh’s testimony that his confessions were obtained under torture, and ordered for his execution to be carried out publicly at the scene of the alleged crime. On 4 February, IHRNGO issued a warning that, given the authorities’ systematic use of lethal force, reliance on torture-tainted confessions, disregard for due process and history of hasty and secret executions, detainees faced an escalating risk of mass death sentences, executions and extrajudicial killings.

Israel | Netanyahu pushes to water down terrorist death penalty bill over fear of global fallout

Prime minister presses Itamar Ben-Gvir to amend proposed law mandating execution for terrorists, citing international and legal concerns as security agencies and opposition lawmakers push back. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has asked National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir to soften a proposed bill mandating the death penalty for terrorists, citing concerns over potential international fallout, officials familiar with the matter told ynet on Saturday. Netanyahu’s aides approached Ben-Gvir, who opposes changes to the legislation, arguing that Israel cannot enact a death penalty law harsher than the standard applied in the United States. Sources said the prime minister and coalition leaders would not allow the bill to pass in its current form.

Florida | Governor DeSantis signs death warrant in 2008 murder case

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. — Governor Ron DeSantis has signed a death warrant for Michael L. King, setting an execution date of March 17, 2026, at 6 p.m. King was convicted and sentenced to death for the 2008 kidnapping, sexual battery and murder of Denise Amber Lee, a 21-year-old North Port mother. On January 17, 2008, Michael Lee King abducted 21-year-old Denise Amber Lee from her North Port home by forcing her into his green Chevrolet Camaro. He drove her around while she was bound, including to his cousin's house to borrow tools like a shovel. King took her to his home, where he sexually battered her, then placed her in the backseat of his car. Later that evening, he drove to a remote area, shot her in the face, and buried her nude body in a shallow grave. Her remains were discovered two days later. During the crime, multiple 9-1-1 calls were made, but communication breakdowns between emergency dispatch centers delayed the response. The case drew national attention and prompted w...

Singapore executes 33-year-old Malaysian drug trafficker

Lingkesvaran was sentenced to death in 2018. A Malaysian man convicted of trafficking a significant quantity of heroin was executed in Singapore on Feb. 11, 2026, according to an official statement issued by the Singapore authorities. Lingkesvaran Rajendaren, 33, had been found guilty of trafficking not less than 52.77 grammes of diamorphine, also known as pure heroin. Singapore law mandates the death penalty for cases involving more than 15 grams of the drug. The authorities said the amount involved was enough to sustain the addiction of approximately 630 abusers for a week, highlighting the harm caused by large-scale drug trafficking.

Somalia Executes Two Al-Shabaab Convicts Over Deadly Mogadishu Attacks

MOGADISHU, Feb 16, 2026 – The Somali federal government on Monday executed two men convicted of orchestrating a series of deadly assassinations and bombings in the capital, judicial officials confirmed. The executions, carried out by a firing squad following sentences handed down by the Armed Forces Court, took place early Monday morning in Mogadishu. The two individuals were identified as Hassan Ali Iftin Buule (known as Gacmey) and Hassan Ali Ibrahim Mohamed Ahmed (known by the aliases Baari, Biibaaye, and Sa’ad). Both had been found guilty of participating in terror attacks that resulted in the death and injury of numerous Somali civilians.

Idaho death row inmate convicted of two separate rapes and murders dies in hospital

Idaho – Erick Hall, a long-time death row inmate convicted of the rapes and murders of two women in separate incidents in the Boise area, has died at the age of 54. The Idaho Department of Correction (IDOC) announced on February 10, 2026, that Hall passed away from natural causes at approximately 9:58 p.m. on February 9, 2026, while receiving care at a local hospital in the Boise region. Hall had been serving two death sentences for first-degree murder convictions stemming from crimes committed in the early 2000s. He was housed at the Idaho Maximum Security Institution (IMSI) in Kuna, where Idaho's death row is located. The first conviction came in October 2004 for the kidnapping, rape, and murder of 38-year-old Lynn Henneman. Henneman, a flight attendant, disappeared in October 2000 after leaving a Boise restaurant. Her body was later discovered, and the case went cold for several years until DNA evidence linked Hall to the crime. A jury sentenced him to death following a trial t...

Iraq executes a former senior officer under Saddam for the 1980 killing of a Shiite cleric

BAGHDAD (AP) — Iraq announced on Monday that a high-level security officer during the rule of Saddam Hussein has been hanged for his involvement in the 1980 killing of a prominent Shiite cleric. The National Security Service said that Saadoun Sabri al-Qaisi, who held the rank of major general under Saddam and was arrested last year, was convicted of “grave crimes against humanity,” including the killing of prominent Iraqi Shiite cleric Mohammed Baqir al-Sadr, members of the al-Hakim family, and other civilians.

Death Penalty News

Search This Blog