Jamaal Howard, 46, is scheduled to be executed by lethal injection in Texas on Wednesday, in what would be the nation's 30th execution this year. Howard was found guilty of capital murder in the 2000 killing of Vickie Swartout, 42, who was shot once in the chest during a robbery at a convenience store in Silsbee, a small rural town about 100 miles northeast of Houston.
First execution since Pike failure
Howard is set to receive a lethal dose of pentobarbital in the first scheduled execution in the US since Tennessee's failed attempt to put Christa Pike to death last week. Pike, 50, survived two doses of pentobarbital as executioners attempted to put her to death on Sept. 30 for the 1995 beating and stabbing death of classmate Colleen Slemmer. Pike is believed to be the only person to survive after lethal injection drugs were administered.
Pike's attorneys said Tuesday (October 6) that she was awake and speaking as she received treatment at a hospital. Her attorneys said her arms were burned and blistered after the attempted lethal injection and that she is handcuffed to the hospital bed. It is currently unknown if Pike will go through a second execution as Tennessee stopped their schedule after the failed attempt.
Appeals and legal arguments
Howard's attorneys have argued that he is intellectually disabled and his execution should be halted. The state said that he has not presented evidence that would show he meets the requirements for a claim of intellectual disability. Howard has an appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court pending to stop the execution. The Supreme Court in 2002 had barred the execution of intellectually disabled people, but it has given states some discretion in how they determine such disabilities.
Evidence presented at the trial included the store's surveillance video, which showed Howard shooting Swartout. Howard, who was 20 at the time, took $114 and a carton of cigarettes from the store, according to court records.
Execution schedule and context
Texas has executed six people so far this year and has two more scheduled after Howard. Despite Pike's case sparking concern over pentobarbital, the state of Texas has not changed plans on using the drug. Florida has carried out 16 executions so far this year, the most of any state. Most states that allow executions use lethal injection as their primary method.
