List of people executed in Nebraska

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The following is a list of people executed by the U.S. state of Nebraska since its statehood.

Contents

Before 1903

The first execution in Nebraska reportedly was of Cyrus Tator, a former Kansas Legislature member and judge in Lykins County, Kansas who was tried and convicted of murdering his business partner in 1863. [1] Before 1903, counties carried out executions until the state took over. Since Nebraska statehood in 1867, a total of 14 people have been executed.

No.Executed personDate of executionMethodCrimeVictimsUnder Governor
1 Stephen D. Richards April 26, 1879 Hanging MurderPeter Anderson and Harlson family Silas Garber
2Orlando CaslarMay 20, 1879George L. Monroe Albinus Nance
3Milton W. SmithJuly 24, 1885His wife (name unknown) James W. Dawes
4Jim ReynoldsMay 21, 1886James and John Pinkston
5 William Jackson Marion A March 25, 1887John Cameron John Milton Thayer
6David HoffmanJuly 22, 1887James B. DeWitt
7Albert HaunstineMay 17, 1891Hiram Roten and William Ashley
8Christian Furst B June 5, 1891Carl J. Pulsifer
9Charles Shepherd B
10Ed NeilOctober 9, 1891Allen and Dorothy Jones
11Clinton E. Dixon C June 24, 1892Corporal Thomas Carter James E. Boyd
12Harry HillMarch 1, 1895Mattes Akeson Silas A. Holcomb
13Claude H. HooverAugust 7, 1896Samual DuBois
14George W. MorganOctober 8, 1897Ida Gaskill
A William Jackson Marion was convicted and executed for the murder of John Cameron. However, Cameron turned up alive in 1891. Marion received a posthumous pardon by Nebraska Governor Bob Kerrey on the 100th anniversary of his execution.
B B Although Christian Furst and Charles Shepherd are listed at 8 and 9, the two were hanged together simultaneously in the only double hanging in Nebraska's history.
C Private Clinton Dixon and his victim Corporal Thomas Carter were both members of the U.S. Army (Sixth U.S. Cavalry) making Dixon's execution a U.S. military execution. As such, only the President could grant clemency. President Benjamin Harrison declined to intervene.

1903–1972

A total of 20 people were executed by Nebraska after 1897 and before the 1972 Supreme Court capital punishment ban.

No.Executed personDate of executionMethodCrimeVictimsUnder Governor
1Gottlieb NeigenfiendMarch 13, 1903 Hanging MurderAnna Bryer and Albert Bryer (ex-wife and ex-father in law) John H. Mickey
2William RheaJuly 10, 1903Herman Zahn
3Harrison ClarkDecember 13, 1907Ed Flury George L. Sheldon
4Frank BarkerJanuary 17, 1908Daniel and Alice Barker (his brother and sister in law)
5Robert M. ShumwayMarch 5, 1909Sarah Martin Ashton C. Shallenberger
6Bert M. TaylorJanuary 28, 1910Pearl Taylor (sister in law)
7Thomas JohnsonMay 19, 1911Henry R. Frankland Chester H. Aldrich
8Albert PrinceMarch 21, 1913Nebraska State Penitentiary Deputy Warden Edward D.Davis John H. Morehead
9Allen V. Grammer A December 20, 1920 Electrocution Lulu Vogt (Allen Grammer's mother in law) Samuel R. McKelvie
10Alson B. Cole A
11James B. KingJune 9, 1922Nebraska State Penitentiary prison guard Robert L. Taylor
12Walter R. SimmonsAugust 11, 1925Frank Pahl Adam McMullen
13Henry E. BartlettApril 29, 1927Asa Ranson (Minden, Nebraska Police Chief)
14 Frank Carter June 24, 1927William McDevitt and Dr. A.D. Searles
15Frank E. SharpOctober 19, 1928Hariet Sharp (his wife)
16Henry ShermanMay 31, 1929Roger and Hattie Pochon, Eugenie Pochon Arthur J. Weaver
17Joseph T. MacAvoyMarch 23, 1945Anna Milroy Dwight Griswold
18Timothy Iron BearDecember 1, 1948John W. and Grace Stollar Val Peterson
19 Roland Dean Sundahl April 30, 1952Bonnie Lou Merrill
20 Charles Starkweather B June 25, 1959Robert Jensen Ralph G. Brooks
A A Allen Grammer and Alson Cole were the first men electrocuted, and the only double electrocution in Nebraska. Allen Grammer was the first man to be electrocuted by the State of Nebraska, pronounced dead at 3:24 pm. Alson Cole was pronounced dead at 3:37 pm.
B Although Charles Starkweather murdered 10 people in Nebraska (and one in Wyoming), he was tried, convicted, and executed for only one murder, that of 17-year-old Robert Jensen.

After 1976

Four people convicted of murder have been executed by Nebraska since 1976. [2] Three were executed by electrocution. On April 21, 2011, the Nebraska Supreme Court set the first execution date via lethal injection for June 14, 2011. On May 26, 2011, the Nebraska Supreme Court stayed the execution due to objections that the sodium thiopental that Nebraska purchased from a Mumbai company failed to comply with U.S. pharmaceutical standards. The state's first lethal injection was carried out on August 14, 2018. [3]

No.NameRaceAgeSexDate of executionMethodVictim(s)Governor
1 Harold Lamont "Wili" Otey Black43MSeptember 2, 1994 Electrocution Jane McManus Ben Nelson
2 John Joseph Joubert A White33MJuly 17, 1996Danny Eberle and Christopher Walden
3Robert E. Williams B [4] [5] Black61MDecember 2, 1997Catherine Brooks and Patricia McGarry
4 Carey Dean Moore White60MAugust 14, 2018 Lethal injection Maynard D. Helgeland and Reuel Eugene Van Ness Jr. Pete Ricketts
A John Joubert was also tried and convicted of murdering Ricky Stetson in Portland, Maine. He received a life sentence in Maine.
B Robert E. Williams also murdered Virginia Rowe of Sioux Rapids, Iowa. [5]

See also

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References

  1. "The Execution of Cyrus Tator," NorthOmahaHistory.com.
  2. "Execution Database". Death Penalty Information Center . Retrieved June 7, 2023.
  3. "NDCS carries out execution of Carey Dean Moore | NDCS - Nebraska Department of Correctional Services". corrections.nebraska.gov. Lincoln, Nebraska. 14 August 2018. Retrieved 15 August 2018.
  4. Inmate Details: 31861 -- Robert Williams. Nebraska Department of Correctional Services. Retrieved on 2007-08-17.
  5. 1 2 Matthew Waite (3 December 1997). "Williams marks state's third electrocution". Daily Nebraskan. Archived from the original on 27 Oct 2007. Retrieved 4 February 2014.