List of people executed in South Carolina

The following is a list of people executed by the U.S. state of South Carolina since capital punishment was resumed in the United States in 1976.

Since the 1976 U.S. Supreme Court decision of Gregg v. Georgia, a total of 45 people have been executed in South Carolina. All of the people executed were convicted of murder. Of the 45 people executed, 38 were executed via lethal injection and 7 via electrocution.[1]

List of people executed in South Carolina since 1976

No. Name Race Age Sex Date of execution County Method Victim(s) Governor
1 Joseph Carl Shaw White 29 M January 11, 1985 Richland Electrocution Tommy Taylor and Carlotta Hartness Richard Riley
2 James Terry Roach White 25 M January 10, 1986
3 Ronald Rusty Woomer White 35 M April 27, 1990[a] Horry Della Louis Sellers Carroll Campbell
4 Donald Henry Gaskins White 58 M September 6, 1991[b] Richland Rudolph Tyner[c]
5 Sylvester Lewis Adams Black 39 M August 18, 1995 York Lethal injection[d] Bryan Chambers David Beasley
6 Robert South White 51 M May 31, 1996 Lexington West Columbia Police Officer Daniel Wayne Cogburn[2]
7 Fred H. Kornahrens III White 47 M July 19, 1996 Charleston Patti Jo Kornahrens, Jason Avant, and Harry Wilkerson
8 Michael Rian Torrence White 35 M September 6, 1996 Lexington Dennis Lollis, Charles Bush, and Cynthia Williams
9 Larry Gene Bell White 46 M October 4, 1996 Electrocution Sharon "Shari" Faye Smith and Debra May Helmick
10 Doyle Cecil Lucas White 41 M November 15, 1996 York Lethal injection Bill Reyfield and Evelyn Reyfield
11 Frank Middleton Jr. Black 33 M November 22, 1996 Charleston Shirley Mae Mack and Janell M. Garner
12 Michael Eugene Elkins White 41 M June 13, 1997 Jasper Patricia Whitt
13 Earl Matthews Jr. Black 32 M November 7, 1997 Charleston Lucia Aimar
14 John David Arnold Jr. White 43 M March 6, 1998 Beaufort Betty Gardner
15 John Herman Plath White 43 M July 10, 1998
16 Sammy Roberts White 40 M September 25, 1998 Berkeley Bill Spain, Kenneth Krause, and Louis Cakley
17 Larry Gilbert Black 43 M December 4, 1998 Lexington Ralph Stoudemire
18 J.D. Gleaton Black 53 M
19 Louis Joe Truesdale Jr. Black 40 M December 11, 1998 Lancaster Rebecca Ann Eudy
20 Andrew Lavern Smith[e] Black 38 M December 18, 1998 Anderson Christy Johnson and Corrie Johnson
21 Ronnie Howard Black 40 M January 8, 1999 Greenville Chinh Thi Nguyen Le
22 Joseph Ernest Atkins Native American 51 M January 22, 1999 Charleston Karen Patterson and Benjamin F. Atkins Jim Hodges
23 Leroy Joseph Drayton Black 44 M November 12, 1999 Rhonda Darlene Smith
24 David Rocheville White 31 M December 3, 1999 Spartanburg Alex Hopps and James Todd Green
25 Kevin Dean Young Black 32 M November 3, 2000 Anderson Dennis Ray Hepler
26 Richard Charles Johnson White 39 M May 3, 2002 Jasper C. Daniel Swanson and Bruce Kenneth Smalls[f]
27 Anthony Green Black 37 M August 23, 2002 Charleston Susan Babich
28 Michael Joseph Passaro White 40 M September 13, 2002 Horry Maggie Passaro
29 David Clayton Hill White 39 M March 19, 2004 Georgetown Georgetown Police Officer Spencer Guerry[3] Mark Sanford
30 Jerry Bridwell McWee White 51 M April 16, 2004 Aiken John Perry
31 Jason Scott Byram White 38 M April 23, 2004 Richland Julie Johnson
32 James Neil Tucker White 47 M May 28, 2004 Calhoun Electrocution Rosa Lee Dolly Oakley and Shannon Mellon
33 Richard Longworth White 36 M April 15, 2005 Spartanburg Lethal injection Alex Hopps and James Todd Green
34 Hastings Arthur Wise Black 51 M November 4, 2005 Aiken 4 murder victims[g]
35 Shawn Paul Humphries White 33 M December 2, 2005 Greenville Dickie Smith
36 William Ernest Downs Jr. White 39 M July 14, 2006 Aiken Keenan O'Mailia
37 Calvin Alphonso Shuler Black 40 M June 22, 2007 Dorchester James Brooks
38 David Mark Hill White 48 M June 6, 2008 Aiken James Riddle, Josie Curry, and Michael Gregory
39 James Earl Reed Black 49 M June 20, 2008 Charleston Electrocution Barbara Lafayette and Joseph Lafayette
40 Joseph Martin Luther Gardner Black 38 M December 5, 2008 Dorchester Lethal injection Melissa McLauchlin
41 Luke A. Williams White 56 M February 20, 2009 Edgefield Linda Williams and Shaun Williams
42 Thomas Treshawn Ivey Black 34 M May 8, 2009 Orangeburg Robert Montgomery and Sgt. Tommy Harrison
43 Jeffrey Brian Motts[4] White 36 M May 6, 2011 Greenville Charles Douglas Martin[h] Nikki Haley
44 Freddie Eugene Owens Black 46 M September 20, 2024 Irene Grainger Graves[i] Henry McMaster
45 Richard Bernard Moore Black 59 M November 1, 2024 Spartanburg James Mahoney

Demographics

Race
White 26 58%
Black 18 40%
Native American 1 2%
Age
20–29 2 4%
30–39 18 40%
40–49 17 38%
50–59 8 18%
60–69 0 0%
Sex
Male 45 100%
Date of execution
1976–1979 0 0%
1980–1989 2 4%
1990–1999 22 49%
2000–2009 18 40%
2010–2019 1 2%
2020–2029 2 4%
Method
Lethal injection 38 84%
Electrocution 7 16%
Governor (Party)
James B. Edwards (R) 0 0%
Richard Riley (D) 2 4%
Carroll A. Campbell Jr. (R) 2 4%
David Beasley (R) 17 38%
Jim Hodges (D) 7 16%
Mark Sanford (R) 14 31%
Nikki Haley (R) 1 2%
Henry McMaster (R) 2 4%
Total 45 100%

See also

Notes

  1. ^ This was the last execution to be held at Central Correctional Institute in downtown Columbia. The prison complex, on the banks of the Congaree River, has since closed and been demolished.
  2. ^ This was the first execution conducted at Broad River Correctional Institution, and the last execution in the state when electrocution was mandatory.
  3. ^ Gaskins killed at least 15 people but was only executed for Tyner's murder.
  4. ^ Earlier in the year, the General Assembly changed capital punishment rules to allow inmates a choice between lethal injection or electrocution for means of execution.
  5. ^ Andrew Lavern Smith was the 500th person to be executed in the United States since the death penalty was reinstated in 1976.
  6. ^ Smalls was a South Carolina Highway Patrol Trooper.
  7. ^ The 4 victims were: Charles Griffeth, David Moore, Leonard Filyaw, and Sheryl Wood.
  8. ^ Motts was previously convicted of murdering Clyde Camby and Etta Osteen.
  9. ^ Also killed Christopher Bryan Lee during his incarceration.

References

  1. ^ "Execution Database | Death Penalty Information Center". Death Penalty Information Center. Retrieved January 9, 2020.
  2. ^ Franklin, Linda. "Cop killer executed in South Carolina".
  3. ^ Collins, Jeffrey. "Police killer put to death". Associated Press. Spartanburg Herald-Journal.
  4. ^ Collins, Jeffrey. "Inmate Jeffrey Motts first to die in SC with new combo of drugs". Associated Press. The Post and Courier.