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List of white defendants executed for killing a black victim

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Executions of white defendants for killing black victims are rare.[1] Since the reinstatement of capital punishment in the United States in 1976, only 21 white people have been executed solely for killing a black person (less than 1.36% of all executions), whereas 299 black people have been executed solely for killing a white person (nearly 19.4% of all executions).[2][3] Of the 21 white people executed for killing a black victim, seven were put to death for racially motivated murders. In addition, 13 white people have been executed for murders involving a black victim and one or more victims of another race; four of these cases were racially motivated.[2][3][4]

Prior to the 1976 reinstatement of capital punishment in the United States, the last confirmed execution of a white person for the killing of a black person was on April 15, 1944, when Fred L. Brady was executed for the robbery and murder of Joe Williams in Kansas.[1]

List of white defendants executed for killing black victims in the United States since 1976

  Indicates cases where the executed defendant killed multiple people of different races
More information No., Date of execution ...
No. Date of execution Executed person Age State Method Victim(s) Ref.
1 September 6, 1991 Donald Henry Gaskins 58 South Carolina Electrocution Rudolph Tyner[a] [4][1]
2 January 24, 1995 Kermit Smith Jr. 37 North Carolina Lethal injection Whelette Collins [4][5]
3 March 20, 1995 Thomas Joseph Grasso 32 Oklahoma Hilda Johnson[b] [4][6]
4 July 1, 1995 Roger Dale Stafford 43 Oklahoma Lethal injection 9 people (1 black, 1 hispanic, and 5 white males, 2 white females)[c] [4][7][8]
5 December 6, 1995 Robert Earl O'Neal Jr. 34 Missouri Lethal injection Arthur Dade[d] [4][9]
6 June 6, 1997 Henry Francis Hays 42 Alabama Electrocution Michael Donald[e] [4][10]
7 December 11, 1997 Thomas Howard Beavers Jr. 26 Virginia Lethal injection Marguerite Lowery [4][11][12]
8 March 6, 1998 John David Arnold Jr. 43 South Carolina Betty Gardner[f] [4][13]
9 July 10, 1998 John Herman Plath [4][14]
10 September 25, 1998 Sammy Roberts 40 South Carolina Lethal injection 3 people (1 black and 2 white males)[g] [4][15][16]
11 April 28, 1999 Eric Christopher Payne 26 Virginia Ruth Parham and Sally Fazio (1 black and 1 white female)[h] [4][11]
12 July 6, 1999 Gary Michael Heidnik 55 Pennsylvania Lethal injection Deborah Dudley and Sandra Lindsay [4][17]
13 July 8, 1999 Norman Lee Newsted 45 Oklahoma Larry Donnell Buckley[i] [4][18]
14 July 21, 1999 Tommy David Strickler 33 Virginia Leann Whitlock[j] [4][11][12]
15 May 3, 2002 Richard Charles Johnson 39 South Carolina Bruce Kenneth Smalls[k] [4][19]
16 September 10, 2003 Larry Allen Hayes 54 Texas Lethal injection Rosalyn Ann Robinson and Mary Evelyn Hayes (1 black and 1 white female)[l] [4][20][21][22]
17 July 14, 2006 William Ernest Downs Jr. 39 South Carolina Lethal injection Keenan O'Mailia[m] [4][23]
18 July 20, 2006 Brandon Wayne Hedrick 27 Virginia Electrocution Lisa Yvonne Crider[n] [4][11][24]
19 November 9, 2006 John Yancey Schmitt 33 Lethal injection Earl Shelton Dunning [4][11][25]
20 September 12, 2007 Daryl Keith Holton 45 Tennessee Electrocution 4 people (1 black female, 3 white males)[o] [4][26]
21 June 6, 2008 David Mark Hill 48 South Carolina Lethal injection 3 people (1 black female, 2 white males)[p] [4][27][28]
22 February 17, 2011 Frank G. Spisak Jr. 59 Ohio 3 people (2 black and 1 white males)[q] [4][29]
23 June 16, 2011 Lee Andrew Taylor 32 Texas Lethal injection Donta Green[r] [4][30][31][22]
24 September 21, 2011 Lawrence Russell Brewer 44 James Byrd Jr.[s] [4][32][33]
25 February 8, 2012 Edwin Hart Turner 38 Mississippi Eddie Brooks and Everett Curry[t] [4][34]
26 September 25, 2012 Cleve Foster 48 Texas Nyanuer Gatluak "Mary" Pal[u] [4][35]
27 January 16, 2013 Robert Charles Gleason Jr. 42 Virginia Electrocution Aaron Alexander Cooper and Harvey Gray Watson Jr. (1 black and 1 white male)[v] [4][11][36]
28 March 6, 2013 Frederick Treesh 48 Ohio Lethal injection Henry Dupree[w] [4][37]
29 September 25, 2013 Harry Mitts Jr. 61 Ohio Lethal injection John A. Bryant and Dennis Glivar (1 black and 1 white male)[x] [4][38]
30 January 11, 2017 Christopher Chubasco Wilkins 48 Texas Willie Ladell Freeman and Mike Silva (1 black and 1 hispanic male) [4][39]
31 July 6, 2017 William Charles Morva 35 Virginia Derrick McFarland and Eric Sutphin (1 black and 1 white male)[y] [4][11]
32 August 24, 2017 Mark James Asay 53 Florida Robert Lee Booker and Robert McDowell (1 black and 1 mixed-race male)[z] [4][40]
33 April 24, 2019 John William King 44 Texas Lethal injection James Byrd Jr.[aa] [4][41]
34 October 14, 2025 Samuel Lee Smithers 72 Florida Lethal injection Denise Roach and Cristy Cowan (1 black and 1 white female) [4][42]
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Demographics

More information Sex, Date of execution ...
Sex
Male 34 100%
Female 0 0%
Date of execution
1976–1979 0 0%
1980–1989 0 0%
1990–1999 14 42%
2000–2009 7 21%
2010–2019 12 35%
2020–2029 1 3%
Age
20–29 3 9%
30–39 10 29%
40–49 14 41%
50–59 5 15%
60–69 1 3%
70–79 1 3%
State
South Carolina 7 21%
Virginia 7 21%
Texas 6 18%
Ohio 3 9%
Oklahoma 3 9%
Florida 2 6%
Alabama 1 3%
Mississippi 1 3%
Missouri 1 3%
North Carolina 1 3%
Pennsylvania 1 3%
Tennessee 1 3%
Method
Lethal injection 29 85%
Electrocution 5 15%
Total 34 100%
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List of white defendants executed for crimes against black victims in the United States (pre-1972)

At least 55 white people were executed in the US for crimes against black people before 1972. Of those, 52 were executed for murder, one was executed for attempted murder, one was executed for kidnapping, and one was executed for "engaging in the slave trade" under the Piracy Law of 1820. Twenty white people were executed for crimes against slaves, 18 for murder, one for attempted murder, and one for slave trading.

More information No., Date of death ...
No. Date of death Inmate Age Sex Method State Crime Victim(s) Ref.
1 November 23, 1739 John Cobidge Unknown Male Hanging Virginia Murder Unknown female[ab] [43]
2 Charles Quin Unknown male[ac] [44]
3 David White
4 May 13, 1747 Thomas Lamb Maryland Nacy (male)[ad] [45]
5 July 1752 Pierre Antoine Dochenet 24 Louisiana Attempted murder Unknown (2 black females)[ae] [46]
6 October 12, 1770 John Jones Unknown Maryland Murder-Slave stealing[af] Jem and Sarah (black male and female)[ag] [45]
7 May 12, 1775 William Pitman Unknown[ah] Virginia Murder Unknown male[ai] [47]
8 January 31, 1789 Matthew Farley Jr. 42 Unknown male[aj] [48]
9 November 25, 1803 Gabriel Reed Unknown James Butts[ak] [49]
10 1806 Micajah Johnson Unknown North Carolina Kidnapping[al] Unknown male[am] [50]
11 November 10, 1820 Mason Scott 19 Murder Caleb[an] [51]
12 July 27, 1821 Isaac Jones Unknown Mississippi Unknown male[ao] [52]
13 April 25, 1822 Samuel Green 26 Massachusetts Billy Williams[ap]
14 October 1, 1823 Jeff King Unknown Kentucky Unknown male[aq] [53]
15 May 28, 1829 George Chapman New York Daniel Wright [54]
16 July 2, 1836 John Hallock Nell (female) [55]
17 May 15, 1840 John Hoover 58 North Carolina Mira (female)[ar] [56]
18 September 19, 1851 Aaron Stookey 42 New York Zeddy Moore [57]
19 July 2, 1852 Jean Adam Unknown Louisiana Murder-Burglary Mary[as] [58]
20 Anthony Delisle
21 January 14, 1853 L. A. J. Stubbs South Carolina Murder Unknown male[at] [59]
22 March 3, 1854 William Blackledge Joe (male)[au] [60]
23 Thomas Motley
24 June 2, 1854 James Wilson Texas Bill (male)[av] [61]
25 June 8, 1860 Benjamin F. Norman Kentucky George Johnson[aw] [62][63]
26 February 21, 1862 Nathaniel Gordon 36 Federal government Piracy[ax] Unknown (at least 29 black people)[ay] [64]
27 January 23, 1863 Frederick Letz 20 Military Murder Tom[az] [65]
28 October 26, 1866 David Howell Unknown Georgia Henry Gamble [66]
29 November 18, 1870 Ezekiel McAbee 21 South Carolina Simon Latham [67][68]
30 October 27, 1871 William B. Parker 51 North Carolina Thomas Price [69]
31 August 7, 1872 Eli Chavis 27 South Carolina Adam Jackson [70]
32 January 16, 1874 Joseph Baker 35 North Carolina Newton Wilfong[ba] [71]
33 June 19, 1876 William Foster 26 Missouri Unknown male [72]
34 December 7, 1877 Harvey Thorpe 22 New York Howard[bb] [73]
35 March 15, 1878 Augustus J. Johnson 24 Georgia Daniel Alford[bc] [74]
36 May 14, 1880 Thomas White 28 South Carolina Pete Hawkins [75]
37 December 17, 1880 Daniel Keith 42 North Carolina Murder-Rape Alice Ellis[bd] [76]
38 February 25, 1881 John Von der Heide 24 Kentucky Murder Rebecca Johnson[be] [77]
39 June 19, 1885 William Morrow 34 Tennessee Dick Overton[bf] [78][79]
40 March 19, 1890 Mel J. Cheatham 40 Mississippi Jim Tilghman [80]
41 July 10, 1896 America "Mary" Snodgrass 18[81][bg] Female Virginia Unknown[bh] [82][83]
42 January 23, 1899 George W. Hite 65 Male William Bowers[bi] [84]
43 June 21, 1910 Antonio Fornaro 31 Electrocution New York Agnes Johnson [85]
44 November 27, 1911 James W. Gatlin[bj] 26 Hanging Georgia Murder-Burglary Mary Randolph and Mary Randolph Jr. (black females)[bk] [86]
45 July 26, 1912 John Bailey 22 Tennessee Murder-Robbery 3 people (2 black males and 1 black female)[bl] [87]
46 George Shelton 19
47 March 21, 1913 Arthur Jones 28 Alabama John Holland[bm] [88][89]
48 William Watson
49 December 7, 1923 John Karayians 34 Electrocution Ohio Murder David Gamble[bn] [90]
50 March 20, 1936 Erleon Whitehead 35 Kentucky Murder-Burglary John Allen [91]
51 February 18, 1938 Milford Exum 40 Gas chamber North Carolina James Williams[bo] [92][93]
52 April 25, 1938 Edward Rose 22 Electrocution Pennsylvania Murder-Robbery Floyd Tranon[bp] [94][95]
53 Theodore Duminiak 20
54 John Oreszak
55 April 15, 1944 Fred L. Brady 46 Hanging Kansas Murder-Robbery Joe Williams [96]
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Demographics (pre-1972)

More information Sex, Date of execution ...
Sex
Male 54 98%
Female 1 2%
Date of execution
1700–1750 4 7%
1750–1800 4 5%
1800–1850 9 15%
1850–1900 25 45%
1900–1950 13 24%
1950–1972 0 0%
Age
Unknown 21 36%
10–19 3 5%
20–29 16 29%
30–39 7 13%
40–49 4 7%
50–59 2 4%
60–69 1 2%
State
Virginia 8 13%
North Carolina 7 11%
South Carolina 6 11%
New York 5 9%
Kentucky 4 7%
Georgia 3 5%
Louisiana 3 5%
Pennsylvania 3 5%
Tennessee 3 5%
Alabama 2 4%
Maryland 2 4%
Mississippi 2 4%
Federal government 1 2%
Kansas 1 2%
Massachusetts 1 2%
Missouri 1 2%
Ohio 1 2%
Texas 1 2%
US military 1 2%
Method
Hanging 48 84%
Electrocution 6 11%
Gas chamber 1 2%
Total 55 100%
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See also

Notes

  1. [a]
    The murder occurred in prison and the victim was a death row inmate. The defendant was a serial killer already serving multiple life sentences for the murders of nine other victims. Codefendant Tony Cimo, a white male, was allowed to plead guilty to lesser charges and served two years and nine months of an 8-year sentence. The deal was offered since Cimo had no criminal history and the victim was on death row for murdering Cimo's parents.
  2. [b]
    The defendant requested a death sentence and waived his appeals. He was also convicted of the murder of a white male in New York.
  3. [c]
    The victims were: Isaac Freeman, Louis Zacarias, Terri Horst, Linda Lorenz, David Lindsey, Melvin Lorenz, Richard Lorenz, David Salsman, and Anthony Tew. Codefendant Verna Stafford, a white female, received a life sentence.
  4. [d]
    The murder occurred in prison and was racially motivated. The defendant was already serving a life sentence for the murder of a white male and was a member of the Aryan Brotherhood. Codefendants Lloyd Schlup and Rodnie Stewart, both of whom were fellow Aryan Brotherhood members, were also convicted in the murder. Stewart was sentenced to life in prison and Schlup was sentenced to death. Schlup, whose guilt was questioned, won an appeal and received a life sentence after pleading guilty to a lesser charge.
  5. [e]
    The murder was racially motivated. The defendant was a member of the Ku Klux Klan. The jury voted in favor of life imprisonment, but the judge overruled the verdict and sentenced the defendant to death. Codefendant James Knowles, a 17-year-old white male, received a life sentence after pleading guilty and agreeing to testify against the defendant. He was paroled in 2006.
  6. [f]
    The murder was racially motivated.
  7. [g]
    The victims were Louis Cakley, Kenneth Krause, and Bill Spain. Codefendant Henry Copeland, a white male, was also sentenced to death, but died on death row in 1986.
  8. [h]
    The defendant waived his appeals.
  9. [i]
    The defendant was also convicted of the murders of three white victims in Utah which was a key reason for his death sentence.
  10. [j]
    Codefendant Ronald Henderson, a white male, received a life sentence.
  11. [k]
    The victim was a police officer. The defendant was also convicted of the murder of a white male and sentenced to life.
  12. [l]
    The defendant waived his appeals.
  13. [m]
    The victim was a minor. The defendant requested a death sentence and waived his appeals. He was also convicted of the murder of a white victim (another minor) in Georgia.
  14. [n]
    Codefendant Trevor Jones, a white male, received a life sentence.
  15. [o]
    The victims were Kayla Holton, Brent Holton, Eric Holton, and Stephen Holton. The defendant waived his appeals.
  16. [p]
    The victims were: Josie Curry, Michael Gregory, and James Riddle. Racial animus was a factor in the murder of the black victim.
  17. [q]
    The victims were: Reverend Horace T. Rickerson, Brian Warford, and Timothy Sheehan. The defendant was a member of the American Nazi Party and the murders were racially motivated.
  18. [r]
    The murder occurred in prison and was racially motivated. The defendant was already serving a life sentence for his role in the murder of a white male and was a member of the Aryan Brotherhood. Codefendant Daniel Richbourg, a white male, was convicted of murder and sentenced to 48 years in prison.
  19. [s]
    The murder was racially motivated. The defendant was a Neo-Nazi and the leader of a white supremacist prison gang. Codefendant John King, also a Neo-Nazi and a member of a white supremacist prison gang, was sentenced to death and executed as well. A third defendant, Shawn Berry, whose motive is disputed, received a life sentence after the prosecution conceded that he was not a white supremacist.
  20. [t]
    Codefendant Paul Stewart, a 17-year-old White male, received a life sentence. Stewart was paroled in 2019 since he was a juvenile at the time of the murders.
  21. [u]
    The defendant was also linked to the murder of a White female. Codefendant Sheldon Ward, a White male, was also sentenced to death, but died on death row in 2010.
  22. [v]
    Both murders occurred in prison. The defendant, who was already serving a life sentence for the murder of a White male, asked for a death sentence, threatened to kill again unless he was executed, and waived his appeals.
  23. [w]
    The defendant was linked to the murder of an Asian male. At his trial, prosecutors presented a videotape in which he admitted to several other murders, including the lynching of a black man.
  24. [x]
    The murder of the Black victim was racially motivated. The White victim was a police officer.
  25. [y]
    The White victim was a police officer, and the Black victim was a hospital security guard.
  26. [z]
    The murders were racially motivated. The Mixed-race victim was White and Hispanic. During the defendant's trial, the court believed this victim was also Black.
  27. [aa]
    The murder was racially motivated. The defendant was a Neo-Nazi and a member of a white supremacist prison gang. Codefendant Lawrence Brewer, also a Neo-Nazi and a member of a white supremacist prison gang, was sentenced to death and executed as well. A third defendant, Shawn Berry, whose motive is disputed, received a life sentence after the prosecution conceded that he was not a white supremacist.
  28. [ab]
    The victim was a slave. The defendant was an indentured servant.
  29. [ac]
    The victim was a slave. One of the defendants was an overseer.
  30. [ad]
    The victim was a slave.
  31. [ae]
    The victims were slaves.
  32. [af]
    Sentenced to death for stealing and murdering the victims, but technically only received a death warrant for slave stealing since the evidence for the latter charge was stronger.
  33. [ag]
    The victims were slaves. Jem was a 6-month-old boy.
  34. [ah]
    Said to be in his 40s or 50s.
  35. [ai]
    The victim was a minor and a slave owned by the defendant. Black people were not allowed to serve as witnesses against white people at the time, but the defendant was convicted after his son and daughter testified against him at his trial.
  36. [aj]
    The victim was a slave owned by the defendant. Codefendant Thomas Farley was convicted of murder and sentenced to death, but reprieved.
  37. [ak]
    The victim was a slave.
  38. [al]
    The defendant kidnapped a free black boy in North Carolina and sold him into slavery in Virginia.
  39. [am]
    The victim was a minor.
  40. [an]
    The victim was a slave.
  41. [ao]
    The victim was a slave.
  42. [ap]
    The murder occurred in prison. The defendant was a serial killer who was implicated in numerous other murders and killed the victim in retaliation for him reporting his escape plot.
  43. [aq]
    The victim was a runaway slave who accompanied the defendant after being promised freedom. The defendant later decided to sell the slave, then murdered him after the slave threatened to reveal that he was stolen.
  44. [ar]
    The victim was a slave owned by the defendant.
  45. [as]
    The victim was a minor and a slave.
  46. [at]
    The victim was a slave owned by the defendant.
  47. [au]
    The victim was a runaway slave, but was not owned by either of the defendants. Motley was a slave owner and Blackledge was an overseer who had been implicated in the murders of other runaway slaves.
  48. [av]
    The victim was a slave. The defendant had been in a dispute with the victim's owner, whom he had threatened to kill on several occasions. When the defendant arrived at the owner's farm to carry out his threat, the owner was not present. As a result, the defendant instead murdered the victim, who was described as the owner's favorite slave.
  49. [aw]
    Codefendants Stephen Durrall and John Baggett, both white males, were also charged with murder. Durrall was also convicted of murder and sentenced to death, but it is unclear whether he was executed. Baggett jumped bail after his trial ended with a hung jury.
  50. [ax]
    The defendant was a slave trader who was convicted of engaging in the slave trade, which was deemed an act of piracy and thus a capital offense under the Piracy Law of 1820.
  51. [ay]
    The defendant transported 897 black victims, of whom at least 29 died. 563 of the victims being transported were minors. The defendant was also linked to at least two other slave voyages and is suspected of a third, in which hundreds of other black victims are believed to have died. Codefendants William Warren, David Hall, Thomas Nelson, Samuel Sleeper, Thomas Savage, and John McCafferty, all white males, were convicted of or pleaded guilty to lesser charges under the Slave Trade Act of 1800. Warren was sentenced to eight months in prison, Hall to nine months in prison, and the others each to 3.5 months in prison.
  52. [az]
    The murder was racially motivated.
  53. [ba]
    The defendant was a Confederate veteran.
  54. [bb]
    The murder occurred in prison.
  55. [bc]
    The murder was racially motivated. The defendant confessed to four murders on the gallows and is suspected of additional murders.
  56. [bd]
    The victim was a minor, aged 9.
  57. [be]
    The victim was a minor, aged 13.
  58. [bf]
    The defendant was already serving a life sentence for the murder of another black male at the time of his conviction. Both murders may have been racially motivated, as the defendant accused both of them of trying to rape his daughter, but there is no evidence for these allegations. The defendant also implicated his father, who was never prosecuted, in the murder.
  59. [bg]
    Misreported as 28.
  60. [bh]
    The victim was the defendant's six-month-old biracial child, whom she burned alive. Also the last woman to be executed for the infanticide of her own child in the United States.
  61. [bi]
    The defendant was a Confederate veteran and had previously served a prison term for malicious shooting.
  62. [bj]
    Also known as A. J. O'Berry.
  63. [bk]
    Racial animus was a factor in the murders. One of the victims was a minor, aged 13.
  64. [bl]
    The victims were: Ben Pettigrew, Fred Pettigrew, and Pearl Pettigrew. The murders were racially motivated. Fred and Pearl were minors (aged 13 and 12). Bailey, Shelton, and two codefendants, also white males, were caught at the scene and chased by a posse, but only Bailey and Shelton were captured. In his final confession before his execution, Bailey named Lige Scott and Grover Hardcastle as the two killers who escaped and said Scott was the ringleader. Scott was arrested and charged as an accessory to murder, but the charges were dropped due to insufficient evidence. Hardcastle was never apprehended.
  65. [bm]
    Codefendant Walter Jones, a white male, was sentenced to life in prison, and codefendant John Watson, also a white male, was granted immunity in exchange for turning state's evidence. Walter Jones was later executed after being convicted of the murder of a white male. All four defendants were members of a gang that had been implicated in at least 55 murders. Arthur Jones confessed to his participation in three murders.
  66. [bn]
    The defendant also critically wounded a white police officer by shooting him in his spinal column and later tried to murder a fellow inmate for testifying against him as the jury deliberated on his fate.
  67. [bo]
    Codefendant Earl Sasser, a white male, was also sentenced to death. However, his conviction was set aside in an agreement with the judge and the prosecution. Sasser then pleaded guilty to being an accessory to murder and was resentenced to life in prison. He was paroled in 1949.
  68. [bp]
    The three defendants also gang raped the victim's girlfriend and were part of a seven-member gang that had committed a violent crime spree involving multiple rapes and robberies. Codefendant Leon Butler, a black male, was acquitted of murder in the same case. The other four members of the gang, all of whom were white males, received prison terms since they were only implicated in rape and robbery, neither of which were capital crimes in Pennsylvania.

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