John Allen Rubio, 46, was executed by lethal injection at the Texas State Penitentiary in Huntsville, Texas, for the murders of three young children he claimed were possessed by evil spirits. Rubio also believed he was the "chosen one" intended to save the world.
Murders in Brownsville flat
Rubio and his girlfriend, Angela Camacho, were charged with the murders of three-year-old Julissa Quesada, 14-month-old John E. Rubio and two-month-old Mary Jane Rubio in the filthy, windowless flat they shared in Brownsville, situated on the Texas-Mexico border. All three children were decapitated by Rubio, with Camacho assisting by restraining one of the youngsters. Camacho entered a guilty plea and received a life sentence, while Rubio was condemned to death row.
Rubio's initial capital murder conviction was quashed by an appeals court, which determined that statements made by Camacho had been improperly admitted as evidence during his trial. Rubio once again entered a not guilty plea on grounds of insanity at his retrial, however he was convicted for a second time and sentenced to death. According to court records, Rubio was not the biological father of the two elder children, though he raised them as his own.
Claims of possession and mental health
At various stages, Rubio maintained the children were possessed and that he was the "chosen one" intended to save the world. Defence specialists diagnosed Rubio with paranoid schizophrenia, a conclusion disputed by experts called by the prosecution. Rubio initially attacked his only biological child Mary Jane and decapitated her. He then instructed Camacho to restrain Julissa while he decapitated her, according to court documents and the couple's own confessions.
The killer subsequently decapitated John when the infant awoke crying, court records reveal. Rubio, who was known to inhale paint fumes, later informed police that he was "the chosen one" and that he had been selected "to help the world" and "help give their life to Jesus," according to reports at the time. Expert witnesses for the defence testified that his upbringing — marked by domestic violence, "toxic" parents, substance abuse and prostitution — had severely impaired his development.
Execution and wider context
The block of flats where the children were murdered was subsequently torn down, with the land transformed into a park and community garden. Rubio's execution was the second to be carried out on the same day, with convicted killer James Dwight Pavatt also put to death earlier for his role in assisting his lover in murdering her estranged husband. Rubio was pronounced dead at 6:47pm local time following a lethal injection at the state prison in Huntsville.
This latest execution comes only weeks after the disastrous lethal injection of Christa Pike, who remarkably survived the procedure. The 50-year-old death row inmate has no recollection of her harrowing ordeal after state officials punctured her with needles at least seven times, leaving her with severe damage to her arms and potentially permanent brain injuries. Pike had been scheduled for execution by lethal injection on September 30, which would have made her the first woman put to death in Tennessee in over two centuries. Instead, she was left fighting for her life after receiving two separate doses of pentobarbital.
The United States is on course to exceed 40 executions for the second year running, a rate largely driven by Florida, as capital punishment once again finds itself under intense scrutiny. Last week, California Governor Gavin Newsom announced plans to commute hundreds of death sentences before he leaves office — a move that experts believe would represent the largest act of mass clemency in American history.
