List of people executed in Arizona (pre-1972)

The following is a list of people executed in the U.S. state of Arizona before 1972, when capital punishment was briefly abolished by the Supreme Court's ruling in Furman v. Georgia . For people executed after the restoration of capital punishment by the Supreme Court's ruling in Gregg v. Georgia (1976), see List of people executed in Arizona. ^{[1] [2]}

Background

Historically, all executions in Arizona were carried out locally by hanging. In January 1910, an official execution chamber was completed at the then-territorial prison in Florence, which later become the state prison in 1912. Capital punishment was briefly abolished in the state between December 8, 1916, to December 5, 1918. Hanging was later replaced by gas asphyxiation on October 28, 1933. ^[2]

List of executions

Name	Race	Age	Sex	Date of execution	County	Crime	Victim(s)	Governor
Jose Lopez	Hispanic	19	M	January 5, 1910	Pinal	Murder	Maria Espinosa, Hispanic [3]	Richard Elihu Sloan [a]
Cesario Sanchez	Hispanic	42	M	December 2, 1910	Coconino	Murder	Gregoria Conejo, Hispanic [4]
Rafael Barela	Hispanic	30	M
Domingo Franco	Hispanic	44	M	July 7, 1911	Santa Cruz	Murder	Mr. Amada, Hispanic [5]
Alejandro Galles	Hispanic	35	M	July 28, 1911	Yavapai	Murder	Louis D. Yeager, white [6]
Ramon Villalobo	Hispanic	28	M	December 10, 1915	Pinal	Murder	Phineas Brown, white (Ray deputy sheriff) [7]	George W. P. Hunt
Francisco Rodriguez	Hispanic	29	M	May 19, 1916	Maricopa	Murder	Female, Hispanic (wife) [8]
N. B. Chavez	Hispanic	35	M	June 9, 1916	Yavapai	Murder	Charles E. King, white (Jerome deputy sheriff) [9]
Miguel Peralta	Hispanic	39	M	July 7, 1916	Yavapai	Murder
Simplicio Torrez	Hispanic	24	M	April 16, 1920	Coconino	Murder	Victor H. Mellick, white (Williams town constable) [10]	Thomas Edward Campbell
Pedro Dominguez	Hispanic	27	M	January 14, 1921	Greenlee	Murder	Antonio Menchera, Hispanic [11]
Nichan Martin	White	24	M	September 9, 1921	Yavapai	Murder	Arthur de Steunder, 21, white [12]
Ricardo Lauterio	Hispanic	23	M	January 13, 1922	Maricopa	Murder	Adelina Sosa de Barillos, Hispanic (common-law wife) [13]
Thomas Roman	Hispanic	32	M			Murder-Robbery	Thomas Hintze and Spangler (deputy constable), 10 (Hintze), white [14]
Theodore West	White	35	M	September 29, 1922	Mohave	Murder	Lem Smith, white [15] [b]
Paul V. Hadley	White	35	M	April 23, 1923	Pima	Murder-Robbery	Anna C. Johnson, white [16]	George W. P. Hunt
Manuel Martinez	Hispanic	28	M	August 10, 1923	Santa Cruz	Murder-Robbery	J. Frank Pearson, white (Ruby postmaster) [17]
William B. Ward	Black	38	M	June 20, 1924	Pinal	Murder	Ted Grosh, white [18]
Sam Flowers	Black	36	M	January 9, 1925	Maricopa	Murder	Sabina Flowers, black (wife) [19]
William Lawrence	White	26	M	January 8, 1926	Maricopa	Murder	Haze Burch, white (Phoenix policeman) [20]
Charles J. Blackburn	White	35	M	May 20, 1927	Graham	Murder	Miguel Bernal, 31, Hispanic [21]
B. W. L. Sam	Asian	27	M	June 22, 1928	Mohave	Murder	Tom King, Asian [22]
Shew Chin	Asian	23	M
Jew Har	Asian	30	M
Gee King Long	Asian	30	M
Eva Dugan	White	49	F	February 21, 1930	Pima	Murder-Robbery	Andrew J. Mathis, white [23] [c]
Refugio Macias	Hispanic	42	M	March 7, 1930	Greenlee	Murder	Pedro Ornelas, Hispanic [24] [d]
Herman Young	White	26	M	August 21, 1931	Pima	Murder-Robbery	John Dye, white [25]
Fred Hernandez	Hispanic	19	M	July 6, 1934	Pinal	Murder-Robbery	Charles P. Washburn, 65, white [26]	Benjamin Baker Moeur
Manuel Hernandez	Hispanic	18	M
George Shaughnessy	White	19	M	July 13, 1934	Santa Cruz	Murder-Robbery	Lon Blankenship, white [27]
Louis Sprague Douglas	White	46	M	August 31, 1934	Yuma	Murder-Robbery	John Hayden and Ralph Hart, both 63, white [28]
Jack Sullivan	White	23	M	May 15, 1936	Cochise	Murder	John B. Bradberry, white (railroad policeman) [29]
Frank Rascon	Hispanic [30]	26	M	July 10, 1936	Maricopa	Murder	Joe Romero, Hispanic [31]
Roland H. Cochrane	White	28	M	October 2, 1936	Maricopa	Murder-Robbery	Richard Giles, white [32]
Frank Duarte	White	22	M	January 8, 1937	Pinal	Murder-Robbery	G. W. Johnson, white [33]	Rawghlie Clement Stanford
Ernest Patten	Black	37	M	August 13, 1937	Apache	Murder	Female, black (common-law wife) [34]
Burt Anderson	White	54	M		Yavapai	Murder	Cecil Kuykendall, 28, white [35]
David Benjamin Knight	White	31	M	September 3, 1937	Maricopa	Murder	J. C. Kalb, white [36]
Elvin Jack Odom	White	27	M	January 14, 1938	Maricopa	Murder-Robbery	Charles Goade, white [37]
Archie Short	White	26	M	April 28, 1939	Pinal	Murder	Jack Hickox, white (Ray deputy sheriff) [38]	Robert Taylor Jones
Frank Conner	Black	22	M	September 22, 1939	Santa Cruz	Murder-Robbery	Tracy Bird, white [39]
Robert Burgunder	White	22	M	August 9, 1940	Maricopa	Murder-Robbery	E. B. Peterson, white [40] [e]
Grady B. Cole	Black	28	M	January 8, 1943	Cochise	Murder	Coy C. Qualls, white [41]	Sidney Preston Osborn
Charles Sanders	Black	20	M
J. C. Levice	Black	21	M
James C. Rawlings	White	46	M	February 19, 1943	Greenlee	Murder-Rape	Marilyn Emma Atkins, 11, white [42]
Elisandro Macias	Hispanic	20	M	April 27, 1943	Pima	Murder-Robbery	Aldo Hage, 60, white [43] [44]
John Earnest Ransom	Black	47	M	January 5, 1945	Maricopa	Murder	Charles H. Payne, 51, white [45]
Lee Albert Smith	White	63	M	April 6, 1945	Cochise	Murder	Edward D. Miller, white [46]
U. L. Holley	Black	38	M	April 13, 1945	Gila	Murder	Morgan Neilson and Ed Williams, 50 (Neilson), white [47]
Angel B. Serna	Hispanic	25	M	July 29, 1950	Pinal	Murder	Catharine Gohn, white [48]	Dan Edward Garvey
Harold Thomas Lantz	White	28	M	July 18, 1951	Cochise	Murder	Ada C. Park, 68, white [49]	John Howard Pyle
Carl J. Folk	White	55	M	March 4, 1955	Navajo	Murder-Rape	Betty Allen, white [50]	Ernest McFarland
Lester Edward Bartholomew	White	28	M	August 31, 1955	Maricopa	Murder	Pamela and Richard Bartholomew, 2 and 3, white (children) [51] [52] [f]
Leonard Coey	White	56	M	May 22, 1957	Maricopa	Murder	Elnora Coey, white (wife) [53]
Arthur Thomas	Black	27	M	November 17, 1958	Cochise	Murder	Janie Miskovich, white [54]
Richard Lewis Jorden	White	26	M	November 22, 1958	Pima	Murder-Rape	Phyllis Mae Thompson, 22, white [55]
Lonnie Craft	Black	40	M	March 7, 1959	Maricopa	Murder	Virginia Craft, black (wife) [56]	Paul Fannin
Robert D. Fenton	White	24	M	March 11, 1960	Pima	Murder	Opal Keller Coward, 53, white [57]
Honor Robinson	Black	42	M	October 31, 1961	Maricopa	Murder	William Bischoff, black [58]
Patrick M. McGee	White	52	M	March 8, 1963	Coconino	Murder-Robbery	Ary J. Best, 66, white [59]
Manuel E. Silva	Hispanic	42	M	March 14, 1963	Pinal	Murder	Beatriz Mankel, white (lover) [60] [61]

See also

• Capital punishment in Arizona
• Crime in Arizona

Notes

1. Territory of Arizona before statehood.
2. Previously murdered a man at a California mental institution with another inmate named Peoples; both were sentenced to life imprisonment but their convictions were later reversed on appeal.
3. Previously suspected of committing two other murders in Missouri and Nevada, but never charged as no bodies were found.
4. Also killed Julian DeLuna during the same crime.
5. Also killed Ellis M. Koury during the same crime.
6. Also killed his wife Marie during the same crime.

References

1. "Executions in Arizona - 1865-1963 - DeathPenaltyUSA, the database of executions in the United States". deathpenaltyusa.org. Retrieved 2025-09-26.
2. Senate, United States Congress (1968). Hearings. U.S. Government Printing Office.
3. Jose Lopez, AZ, 1910 January 5, Espy Archive
4. Cesario Sanchez, AZ, 1910 December 2, Espy Archive
5. Domingo Franco, AZ, 1911 July 7, Espy Archive
6. Alejandro Galles, AZ, 1911 July 28, Espy Archive
7. Ramon Villalobo, AZ, 1915 December 10, Espy Archive
8. "Mexican, Saved From Death Nine Times, Is Executed For Killing Wife Five Years Ago". Prescott Journal Miner . May 20, 1916. p. 1. Retrieved September 26, 2025.
9. N. B. Chavez, AZ, 1916 June 9, Espy Archive
10. Simplicio Torrez, AZ, 1920 April 16, Espy Archive
11. Pedro Dominguez, 1921 January 14, Espy Archive
12. Nichan Martin, 1921 September 9, Espy Archive
13. Ricardo Lauterio, AZ, 1922 January 13, Espy Archive
14. Thomas Roman, AZ, 1922 January 13, Espy Archive
15. Theodore West, 1922 September 29, Espy Archive
16. Paul Hadley, 1923 April 13, Espy Archive
17. "Pays Penalty For Arizona Killing". The Evening Independent . August 10, 1923. p. 1. Retrieved September 26, 2025.
18. "Negro Hanged In Arizona". St. Joseph News-Press . June 20, 1924. p. 10. Retrieved September 26, 2025.
19. Sam Flowers, AZ, 1925 January 9, Espy Archive
20. "Lawrence Dies With Nerve As Firm As Steel". Prescott Evening Courier . January 8, 1926. p. 1. Retrieved September 26, 2025.
21. Charles Blackburn, 1927 May 20, Espy Archive
22. King Long Gee, Har Jew, Chin Shew, B. W. Sam, 1928 June 22, Espy Archive
23. Eva Dugan, 1930 February 21, Espy Archive
24. Refugio Macias, 1930 March 7, Espy Archive
25. Herman Young, AZ, 1931 August 21, Espy Archive
26. Fred Hernandez, Manuel Hernandez, 1934 July 6, Espy Archive
27. "Gas Ends Life Of Bad Lad who Beat Jail Term". The Newburgh News . July 12, 1934. p. 12. Retrieved September 27, 2025.
28. Louis Douglas, 1934 August 31, Espy Archive
29. Jack Sullivan, 1936 May 15, Espy Archive
30. "Kisses Husband, Inhales Fumes". Waycross Journal-Herald . July 11, 1936. p. 1. Retrieved September 27, 2025.
31. "Cowboy Murderer Dies in Gas Chamber". The Telegraph-Herald . July 10, 1936. p. 3. Retrieved September 27, 2025.
32. "Former U.S. Hero Gassed for Crime". The Telegraph-Herald . October 2, 1936. p. 9. Retrieved September 27, 2025.
33. Frank Duarte, AZ, 1937 January 8, Espy Archive
34. Ernest Patten, AZ, 1937 August 13, Espy Archive
35. "Gas Executions Take 3 On Friday The 13th". The Portsmouth Times . August 13, 1937. p. 13. Retrieved September 27, 2025.
36. "Expiates Friend's Slaying". The Spokesman-Review . September 4, 1937. p. 18. Retrieved September 27, 2025.
37. Elvin Odom, 1938 January 14, Espy Archive
38. "Short Comes Out Of 'Coma'". Prescott Evening Courier . April 27, 1939. p. 1. Retrieved September 27, 2025.
39. "Pays With Life". Spokane Daily Chronicle . September 22, 1939. p. 17. Retrieved September 27, 2025.
40. "Penalty Paid By Burgunder". Prescott Evening Courier . August 9, 1940. pp. 1–8. Retrieved September 28, 2025.
41. Charles Sanders, AZ, 1943 January 8, Espy Archive
42. James Rawlings, 1943 February 19, Espy Archive
43. Elisandro Macias, AZ, 1943 April 27, Espy Archive
44. "Alleged Slayer Is Held Without Bond". Prescott Evening Courier . June 7, 1941. p. 1. Retrieved September 28, 2025.
45. John Ransom, AZ, 1945 January 5, Espy Archive
46. Lee Smith, 1945 April 6, Espy Archive
47. U. L. Holley, AZ, 1945 April 13, Espy Archive
48. Angel Serna, AZ, 1950 July 29, Espy Archive
49. Harold Lantz, AZ, 1951 July 18, Espy Archive
50. Carl Folk, 1955 March 4, Espy Archive
51. "Man Executed For Slaying Wife, Tots". Rome News-Tribune . August 31, 1955. p. 8. Retrieved September 28, 2025.
52. "Family Slayer Executed by Gas In Arizona Prison". The Telegraph-Herald . August 31, 1955. p. 8. Retrieved September 28, 2025.
53. "Wife Slayer Is Executed in Arizona". St. Joseph News-Press . May 22, 1957. p. 5. Retrieved September 28, 2025.
54. "Gas Chamber Death Ends Five Year Fight". The Evening Independent . November 17, 1958. p. 1. Retrieved September 28, 2025.
55. Richard Jordan, 1958 November 22, Espy Archive
56. Lonnie Craft, AZ, 1959 March 7, Espy Archive
57. "Tucson Slayer Dies in Gas Chamber". Prescott Evening Courier . March 11, 1960. p. 1. Retrieved September 28, 2025.
58. "Robinson Executed". Prescott Evening Courier . October 31, 1961. p. 1. Retrieved September 28, 2025.
59. Patrick McGee, 1963 March 8, Espy Archive
60. Manuel Silva, AZ, 1963 March 14, Espy Archive
61. "Convicted Murderer Executed". Prescott Evening Courier . March 14, 1963. p. 5. Retrieved September 28, 2025.