Capital punishment for juveniles in the United States
Updated: 12/20/2025, 1:53:11 PM Wikipedia source
In the United States, capital punishment for juveniles existed until March 2, 2005, when the U.S. Supreme Court ruled it unconstitutional in Roper v. Simmons. Prior to Roper, there were 71 people on death row in the United States for crimes committed as juveniles. The last juvenile offender to be executed in the United States was 32-year-old Scott Hain in Oklahoma in 2003. The last female juvenile offender to be executed in the United States was Virginia Christian, who was executed in Virginia in 1912. The death penalty for juveniles in the United States was first applied in 1642. Before the 1972 Furman v. Georgia ruling that instituted a death penalty moratorium nationwide, there were approximately 343 executions of juveniles in the United States. In the years following the 1976 Gregg v. Georgia ruling that overturned Furman and upheld the constitutionality of the death penalty, there were 22 executions of juvenile offenders before the practice was outlawed. One of the juvenile offenders had received another death sentence for a separate murder committed at age 18, but was executed specifically for the murder he committed when was 17 since he exhausted his appeals in that case first. Prior to Roper, states had varying minimum ages for defendants to qualify for the death penalty; 19 states did not permit the execution of juveniles, while the remaining 19 retentionist states allowed juveniles as young as 16 or 17 at the time of their crime to be executed, albeit due to lengthy appeals processes, none of them were still juveniles by the time of their executions.
Tables
· List of juveniles executed in the United States since 1976
At execution
At execution
No.
At offense
Name
At execution
Charles Francis Rumbaugh
Charles Francis Rumbaugh
No.
1
Name
Charles Francis Rumbaugh
Date ofexecution
September 11, 1985
Ethnicity
White
Age
17
Age
28
Method
Lethal injection
State
Texas
Victims
Michael Fiorillo, 58, white
James Terry Roach
James Terry Roach
No.
2
Name
James Terry Roach
Date ofexecution
January 10, 1986
Ethnicity
25
Age
Electrocution
Age
South Carolina
Method
Carlotta Harris and Thomas Taylor, 14 and 17, white
Jay Kelly Pinkerton
Jay Kelly Pinkerton
No.
3
Name
Jay Kelly Pinkerton
Date ofexecution
May 15, 1986
Ethnicity
White
Age
17
Age
24
Method
Lethal injection
State
Texas
Victims
Sarah Donn Lawrence, 30, white
Dalton Prejean
Dalton Prejean
No.
4
Name
Dalton Prejean
Date ofexecution
May 18, 1990
Ethnicity
Black
Age
17
Age
30
Method
Electrocution
State
Louisiana
Victims
Donald Cleveland, 25, white (policeman)
Johnny Frank Garrett
Johnny Frank Garrett
No.
5
Name
Johnny Frank Garrett
Date ofexecution
February 11, 1992
Ethnicity
White
Age
28
Age
Lethal injection
Method
Texas
State
Tadea Benz, 76, white
Curtis Paul Harris
Curtis Paul Harris
No.
6
Name
Curtis Paul Harris
Date ofexecution
July 1, 1993
Ethnicity
Black
Age
31
Age
Timothy Michael Merka, 27, white
Frederick Lashley
Frederick Lashley
No.
7
Name
Frederick Lashley
Date ofexecution
July 28, 1993
Ethnicity
29
Age
Missouri
Age
Janie Tracy, 55, black (foster mother)
Ruben Montoya Cantu
Ruben Montoya Cantu
No.
8
Name
Ruben Montoya Cantu
Date ofexecution
August 24, 1993
Ethnicity
Hispanic
Age
26
Age
Texas
Method
Pedro Gomez, 25, Hispanic
Christopher Burger
Christopher Burger
No.
9
Name
Christopher Burger
Date ofexecution
December 7, 1993
Ethnicity
White
Age
33
Age
Electrocution
Method
Georgia
State
Roger Honeycutt, 25, white
Joseph John Cannon
Joseph John Cannon
No.
10
Name
Joseph John Cannon
Date ofexecution
April 24, 1998
Ethnicity
38
Age
Lethal injection
Age
Texas
Method
Anne Walsh, 45, white
Robert Anthony Carter
Robert Anthony Carter
No.
11
Name
Robert Anthony Carter
Date ofexecution
May 18, 1998
Ethnicity
Black
Age
34
Age
Sylvia Reyes, 17, Hispanic
Dwayne Allen Wright
Dwayne Allen Wright
No.
12
Name
Dwayne Allen Wright
Date ofexecution
October 14, 1998
Ethnicity
26
Age
Virginia
Age
Saba Tekle, 34, black
Sean Richard Sellers
Sean Richard Sellers
No.
13
Name
Sean Richard Sellers
Date ofexecution
February 4, 1999
Ethnicity
White
Age
16
Age
29
Method
Oklahoma
State
Three people, white
Douglas Christopher Thomas
Douglas Christopher Thomas
No.
14
Name
Douglas Christopher Thomas
Date ofexecution
January 10, 2000
Ethnicity
17
Age
26
Age
Virginia
Method
James B. Wiseman and Kathy J. Wiseman, both 33, white
Steve Edward Roach
Steve Edward Roach
No.
15
Name
Steve Edward Roach
Date ofexecution
January 13, 2000
Ethnicity
23
Age
Mary Ann Hughes, 70, white
Glen Charles McGinnis
Glen Charles McGinnis
No.
16
Name
Glen Charles McGinnis
Date ofexecution
January 25, 2000
Ethnicity
Black
Age
27
Age
Texas
Method
Leta Ann Wilkerson, 30, white
Gary Lee Graham
Gary Lee Graham
No.
17
Name
Gary Lee Graham
Date ofexecution
June 22, 2000
Ethnicity
36
Age
Bobby Grant Lambert, 53, white
Gerald Lee Mitchell
Gerald Lee Mitchell
No.
18
Name
Gerald Lee Mitchell
Date ofexecution
October 22, 2001
Ethnicity
33
Age
Charles Angelo Marino, 20, white
Napoleon Beazley
Napoleon Beazley
No.
19
Name
Napoleon Beazley
Date ofexecution
May 28, 2002
Ethnicity
25
Age
John E. Luttig, 63, white
T.J. Jones
T.J. Jones
No.
20
Name
T.J. Jones
Date ofexecution
August 8, 2002
Ethnicity
Willard Lewis Davis, 75, white
Toronto Markkey Patterson
Toronto Markkey Patterson
No.
21
Name
Toronto Markkey Patterson
Date ofexecution
August 28, 2002
Ethnicity
24
Age
Ollie Brown, 3, black (cousin's daughter)
Scott Allen Hain
Scott Allen Hain
No.
22
Name
Scott Allen Hain
Date ofexecution
April 3, 2003
Ethnicity
White
Age
32
Age
Oklahoma
Method
Michael William Houghton and Laura Lee Sanders, 27 and 22, white
| No. | Name | Date ofexecution | Ethnicity | Age | Method | State | Victims | Ref. | |
| At offense | At execution | ||||||||
| 1 | Charles Francis Rumbaugh | September 11, 1985 | White | 17 | 28 | Lethal injection | Texas | Michael Fiorillo, 58, white | |
| 2 | James Terry Roach | January 10, 1986 | 25 | Electrocution | South Carolina | Carlotta Harris and Thomas Taylor, 14 and 17, white | |||
| 3 | Jay Kelly Pinkerton | May 15, 1986 | White | 17 | 24 | Lethal injection | Texas | Sarah Donn Lawrence, 30, white | |
| 4 | Dalton Prejean | May 18, 1990 | Black | 17 | 30 | Electrocution | Louisiana | Donald Cleveland, 25, white (policeman) | |
| 5 | Johnny Frank Garrett | February 11, 1992 | White | 28 | Lethal injection | Texas | Tadea Benz, 76, white | ||
| 6 | Curtis Paul Harris | July 1, 1993 | Black | 31 | Timothy Michael Merka, 27, white | ||||
| 7 | Frederick Lashley | July 28, 1993 | 29 | Missouri | Janie Tracy, 55, black (foster mother) | ||||
| 8 | Ruben Montoya Cantu | August 24, 1993 | Hispanic | 26 | Texas | Pedro Gomez, 25, Hispanic | |||
| 9 | Christopher Burger | December 7, 1993 | White | 33 | Electrocution | Georgia | Roger Honeycutt, 25, white | ||
| 10 | Joseph John Cannon | April 24, 1998 | 38 | Lethal injection | Texas | Anne Walsh, 45, white | |||
| 11 | Robert Anthony Carter | May 18, 1998 | Black | 34 | Sylvia Reyes, 17, Hispanic | ||||
| 12 | Dwayne Allen Wright | October 14, 1998 | 26 | Virginia | Saba Tekle, 34, black | ||||
| 13 | Sean Richard Sellers | February 4, 1999 | White | 16 | 29 | Oklahoma | Three people, white | ||
| 14 | Douglas Christopher Thomas | January 10, 2000 | 17 | 26 | Virginia | James B. Wiseman and Kathy J. Wiseman, both 33, white | |||
| 15 | Steve Edward Roach | January 13, 2000 | 23 | Mary Ann Hughes, 70, white | |||||
| 16 | Glen Charles McGinnis | January 25, 2000 | Black | 27 | Texas | Leta Ann Wilkerson, 30, white | |||
| 17 | Gary Lee Graham | June 22, 2000 | 36 | Bobby Grant Lambert, 53, white | |||||
| 18 | Gerald Lee Mitchell | October 22, 2001 | 33 | Charles Angelo Marino, 20, white | |||||
| 19 | Napoleon Beazley | May 28, 2002 | 25 | John E. Luttig, 63, white | |||||
| 20 | Jones | August 8, 2002 | Willard Lewis Davis, 75, white | ||||||
| 21 | Toronto Markkey Patterson | August 28, 2002 | 24 | Ollie Brown, 3, black (cousin's daughter) | |||||
| 22 | Scott Allen Hain | April 3, 2003 | White | 32 | Oklahoma | Michael William Houghton and Laura Lee Sanders, 27 and 22, white | |||
References
- Pinkerton received another death sentence for a murder committed at age 18, but was executed for the murder he committed
- Also murdered 25-year-old Sherry Welch, white. Pinkerton was 18 when he murdered Welch and was sentenced to death for he
- Previously convicted of murdering 37-year-old John Doucet when he was 14 and served time in juvenile detention.
- Also murdered 63-year-old R. B. Scott, white.
- Also murdered 31-year-old Odell Thomas and 24-year-old Reginald L. Turman, black, in Washington, D.C. and Maryland, resp
- Robert Bower, 32, Paul Bellafatto (stepfather), 43, and Vonda Bellofatto (mother), 32.
- Also murdered 18-year-old Hector Manguia, Hispanic.
- Also murdered her mother and sister, 25-year-old Kimberly Brewer and 6-year-old Jennifer Brewer.
- Death Penalty Information Centerhttps://deathpenaltyinfo.org/policy-issues/juveniles/prior-to-roper-v-simmons
- Mayflower Families - Morality and Sexhttps://web.archive.org/web/20130120022604/http://www.mayflowerfamilies.com/colonial_life/morality_and_sex.htm
- Records of the Colony of New Plymouthhttps://archive.org/stream/recordsofcolonyo0102newp#page/50/mode/2up
- The Guthrie Daily Leaderhttps://www.newspapers.com/article/the-guthrie-daily-leader-negros-boy-joe/67737823/
- Legal Executions in Georgia: A Comprehensive Registry, 1866-1964https://books.google.com/books?id=t2hECwAAQBAJ&q=Joe+Persons+execution+Sept.+24%2C+1915&pg=PA110
- Evening Public Ledgerhttp://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn83045211/1915-09-24/ed-1/seq-1/
- Hopkinsville Kentuckianhttps://web.archive.org/web/20230714062016/https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn86069395/1915-09-30/ed-1/seq-1/
- Los Angeles Timeshttps://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1986-01-07-me-13957-story.html
- Before the needles Archived 2007-06-25 at the Wayback Machinehttp://users.bestweb.net/~rg/execution.htm
- Justia Lawhttps://supreme.justia.com/cases/federal/us/487/815/
- Best Web Archived 2007-06-25 at the Wayback Machinehttp://users.bestweb.net/~rg/execution.htm
- "Juvenile News and Developments - Previous Years"https://web.archive.org/web/20071215071318/http://www.deathpenaltyinfo.org/article.php?scid=27&did=206
- The Washington Posthttps://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/lifestyle/wellness/1988/07/19/history-of-the-juvenile-death-penalty/d2ebf62e-3c6f-4f9b-b673-d6d607e0154a/
- The Untold Pasthttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=emsgm31rpQI
- British Pathehttps://www.britishpathe.com/asset/217696/
- Death Penalty Information Centerhttps://deathpenaltyinfo.org/policy-issues/policy/united-states-supreme-court/significant-supreme-court-opinions/roper-v-simmons-resource-page/status-of-the-juvenile-death-penalty-prior-to-roper-v-simmons-by-state
- Bartollas, C., & Miller, S. J. (2017). Juvenile justice in America. Boston: Pearson.
- UPIhttps://www.upi.com/Archives/1986/05/15/Young-killer-executed/7428516513600/
- "Stanford v. Kentucky"https://www.law.cornell.edu/supremecourt/text/492/361
- "The Juvenile Death Penalty Prior to Roper v. Simmons"https://deathpenaltyinfo.org/policy-issues/juveniles/prior-to-roper-v-simmons
- The Morning Callhttps://www.mcall.com/2006/04/26/robinson-resentenced-for-murder-in-case-of-serial-killers-first-victim-death-penalty-was-set-aside/
- The Clark County Prosecuting Attorney - The Death Penalty - #048 - Charles Rumbaughhttp://www.clarkprosecutor.org/html/death/usexecute.htm
- The Clark County Prosecuting Attorney - The Death Penalty - #051 - James Terry Roachhttp://www.clarkprosecutor.org/html/death/usexecute.htm
- The Clark County Prosecuting Attorney - The Death Penalty - #057 - Jay Pinkertonhttp://www.clarkprosecutor.org/html/death/usexecute.htm
- The Clark County Prosecuting Attorney - The Death Penalty - #128 - Dalton Prejeanhttp://www.clarkprosecutor.org/html/death/usexecute.htm
- The Clark County Prosecuting Attorney - The Death Penalty - #161 - Johnny Garretthttp://www.clarkprosecutor.org/html/death/usexecute.htm
- The Clark County Prosecuting Attorney - The Death Penalty - #207 - Curtis Harrishttp://www.clarkprosecutor.org/html/death/usexecute.htm
- The Clark County Prosecuting Attorney - The Death Penalty - #209 - Frederick Lashleyhttp://www.clarkprosecutor.org/html/death/usexecute.htm
- The Clark County Prosecuting Attorney - The Death Penalty - #214 - Ruben Cantuhttp://www.clarkprosecutor.org/html/death/usexecute.htm
- The Clark County Prosecuting Attorney - The Death Penalty - #224 - Christopher Burgerhttp://www.clarkprosecutor.org/html/death/usexecute.htm
- The Clark County Prosecuting Attorney - The Death Penalty - #455 - Joseph Cannonhttp://www.clarkprosecutor.org/html/death/usexecute.htm
- The Clark County Prosecuting Attorney - The Death Penalty - #460 - Robert A. Carterhttp://www.clarkprosecutor.org/html/death/usexecute.htm
- The Clark County Prosecuting Attorney - The Death Penalty - #485 - Dwayne Allen Wrighthttp://www.clarkprosecutor.org/html/death/usexecute.htm
- The Clark County Prosecuting Attorney - The Death Penalty - #512 - Sean Richard Sellershttp://www.clarkprosecutor.org/html/death/US/sellers512.htm
- The Clark County Prosecuting Attorney - The Death Penalty - #601 - Douglas Christopher Thomashttp://www.clarkprosecutor.org/html/death/US/thomas601.htm
- The Clark County Prosecuting Attorney - The Death Penalty - #604 - Steve Edward Roachhttp://www.clarkprosecutor.org/html/death/US/roach604.htm
- The Clark County Prosecuting Attorney - The Death Penalty - #609 - Glen Charles McGinnishttp://www.clarkprosecutor.org/html/death/US/mcginnis609.htm
- The Clark County Prosecuting Attorney - The Death Penalty - #648 - Gary Lee Grahamhttp://www.clarkprosecutor.org/html/death/US/graham648.htm
- The Clark County Prosecuting Attorney - The Death Penalty - #737 - Gerald Lee Mitchellhttp://www.clarkprosecutor.org/html/death/US/mitchell737.htm
- The Clark County Prosecuting Attorney - The Death Penalty - #779 - Napoleon Beazley Archived February 8, 2004, at the Wahttp://www.clarkprosecutor.org/html/death/US/beazley779.htm
- The Clark County Prosecuting Attorney - The Death Penalty - #789 - T. J. Joneshttp://www.clarkprosecutor.org/html/death/US/jones789.htm
- The Clark County Prosecuting Attorney - The Death Penalty - #795 - Toronto Markkey Pattersonhttp://www.clarkprosecutor.org/html/death/US/patterson795.htm
- The Clark County Prosecuting Attorney - The Death Penalty - #843 - Scott Allen Hainhttp://www.clarkprosecutor.org/html/death/US/hain843.htm