Virginia’s Execution History
Virginia has a long and dark history with the death penalty. The first execution in the New World took place in Virginia in 1608 when Captain George Kendall was executed in Jamestown for spying. Throughout its history as a colony and a state, Virginia has executed more than 1,300 people, the most of any other state. Virginia has also executed more women and the youngest children of any state.
Since the resumption of capital punishment in the late 1970s following a de facto moratorium imposed by the courts, Virginia has executed 111 people, behind only Texas and Oklahoma during that time. The average time between conviction and execution in Virginia is less than eight years, by far the shortest in the nation.
Since the 1970s, 155 persons convicted and sentenced to death in the United States have been released from death row with evidence of their innocence, spending an average of 10 years on death row. Many of these victims of a faulty justice system would have been executed before evidence of their innocence came to light if they had been convicted in Virginia.
Virginia has executed 111 people since reinstatement of the death penalty in 1976.
Executions Since 1976
| Date Killed | Prisoner | Race | Victims’ Race/Sex | Victims’ Name(s) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aug. 10, 1982 | Frank Coppola | W | W/F | Muriel Hatchell |
| Oct. 12, 1984 | Linwood Briley | B | W/M | John Gallaher |
| Apr. 18, 1985 | James Briley | B | B/F B/M |
Judy Barton Harvey Barton |
| June 25, 1985 | Morris Mason | B | W/F | Muriel Hand |
| Aug. 31, 1986 | Michael Smith | B | W/F | Audrey Weiler |
| July 6, 1987 | Richard Whitley | W | W/F | Phoebe Parsons |
| Apr. 14, 1988 | Earl Clanton | B | B/F | Wilhelmina Smith |
| Aug. 30, 1989 | Alton Waye | B | W/F | Laverne Marshall |
| July 19, 1990 | Richard Boggs | W | W/F | Treeby Shaw |
| Oct. 17, 1990 | Wilbert Evans | B | B/M | William Truesdale |
| Dec. 13, 1990 | Buddy Justus | W | W/F | Ida Mae Moses |
| July 24, 1991 | Albert Clozza | W | W/F | Patricia Bolton |
| Aug. 22, 1991 | Derick Peterson | B | W/M | Howard Kauffman |
| May 20, 1992 | Roger Coleman | W | W/F | Wanda McCoy |
| July 23, 1992 | Edward Fitzgerald | W | W/F | Patricia Cubbage |
| Sept. 15, 1992 | Willie Jones | B | B/M B/F |
Graham Adkins Myra Adkins |
| Dec. 10, 1992 | Timothy Bunch | W | A/F | Su Cha Thomas |
| Jan. 19, 1993 | Charles Stamper | B | B/F 2-B/M |
Agnes Hicks Franklin Cooley Stephen Staples |
| Mar. 18, 1993 | Syvasky Poyner | B | W/F W/F W/F W/F W/F |
Joyce Baldwin Louise Paulett Vicki Ripple Chestine Brooks Carolyn Hedrick |
| June 17, 1993 | Andrew Chabrol | W | W/F | Lisa Herrington |
| Sept. 14, 1993 | Joe Wise | B | W/M | William Ricketson |
| Dec. 16, 1993 | David Pruett | W | W/F W/F |
Wilma Harvey Debra McInnis |
| Mar. 3, 1994 | Johnny Watkins | B | W/F W/M |
Betty Barker Carl Buchanan |
| Apr. 27, 1994 | Timothy Spencer | B | W/F W/F W/F W/F |
Susan Tucker Debbie Davis Susan Hellams Diane Cho |
| Jan. 24, 1995 | Dana Edmonds | B | W/M | John Elliott |
| May 25, 1995 | Willie Turner | B | W/M | Jack Smith |
| Sept. 27, 1995 | Dennis Stockton | W | W/M | Kenneth Arnder |
| Oct. 19, 1995 | Mickey Davidson | W | W/F W/F W/F |
Doris Davidson Mamie Clatterbuck Tammy Clatterbuck |
| Nov. 13, 1995 | Herman Barnes | B | W/M W/M |
Clyde Jenkins Mohammed Afifi |
| Jan. 4, 1996 | Walter Correll | W | W/M | Charles Bousman |
| Jan. 23,1996 | Richard Townes | B | W/F | Virginia Goebel |
| July 17, 1996 | Joseph Savino | W | W/M | Thos McWaters |
| Nov. 21, 1996 | Ronald Bennett | B | W/F | Anne Keller Vaden |
| Dec. 3, 1996 | Gregory Beaver | W | W/M | Leo Whitt |
| Dec. 10, 1996 | Larry Stout | B | W/F | Jacqueline Kooshian |
| Dec. 12, 1996 | Lem Tuggle | W | W/F | Jessie Havens |
| Dec. 16, 1996 | Ronald Hoke | W | W/F | Virginia Stell |
| Feb. 6, 1997 | Michael George | W | W/M | Alexander Sztanko |
| Feb. 26, 1997 | Coleman Gray | B | W/M | Richard McClelland |
| July 17, 1997 | Roy Bruce Smith | W | W/M | Sgt. John Conner |
| July 23, 1997 | Joseph O’Dell | W | W/F | Helen Schartner |
| Aug.19, 1997 | Carlton Pope | B | W/F | Cynthia Gray |
| Sept. 17, 1997 | Mario Murphy | F* | W/M | James Radcliff |
| Nov. 13, 1997 | Dawud Mu’Min | B | W/F | Gladys Nopwasky |
| Dec. 9, 1997 | Michael Satcher | B | W/F | Anne Elizabeth Borghesani |
| Dec. 11, 1997 | Thomas Beavers | W | B/F | Marguerite Lowery |
| Feb. 10, 1998 | Tony Mackall | B | W/F | Mary Elizabeth Dahn |
| Mar. 18, 1998 | Douglas Buchanan, Jr. | W | W/M W/M W/M W/F |
Douglas Buchanan Sr. Donald Patterson Joel Jerry Patterson Geraldine Patterson Buchanan |
| Mar. 25, 1998 | Ronald Watkins | B | W/M | William McCauley |
| Apr. 14, 1998 | Angel Breard | F** | W/F | Ruth Dickie |
| June 18, 1998 | Dennis Eaton | W | W/M | Jerry Hines |
| July 23, 1998 | Danny King | W | W/F | Carolyn Rogers |
| Aug. 20, 1998 | Lance Chandler | B | W/M | William Dix |
| Aug. 31, 1998 | Johnile DuBois | B | W/M | Philip Council |
| Sept. 23, 1998 | Kenneth Stewart, Jr. | W | W/F W/M |
Cynthia Stewart Jonathan Stewart |
| Oct. 14, 1998 | Dwayne Wright | B | B/F | Saba Tekle |
| Oct. 21, 1998 | Ronald Fitzgerald | B | B/M B/M |
Coy White Hugh Morrison |
| Nov. 17, 1998 | Kenneth Wilson | B | B/F | Jacqueline Stephens |
| Dec. 3, 1998 | Kevin Cardwell | B | B/M | Anthony Brown |
| Jan. 20, 1999 | Mark Sheppard | B | W/M W/F |
Richard Rosenbluth Rebecca Rosenbluth |
| Feb. 4, 1999 | Tony Fry | W | W/M | Leland Jacobs |
| March 9, 1999 | George Quesinberry | W | W/M | Thomas Haynes |
| March 25, 1999 | David Lee Fisher | W | W/M | David Wilkey |
| April 13, 1999 | Carl Chichester | B | W/M | Timothy Rigney |
| April 20, 1999 | Arthur Jenkins | W | W/M W/M |
Floyd Jenkins Lee Brinklow |
| April 28, 1999 | Eric Payne | W | W/F B/F |
Sally Fazio Ruth Parham |
| April 29, 1999 | Ronald Yeatts | B | F | Ruby Dodson |
| July 21, 1999 | Thomas Strickler | W | B/F | Leann Whitlock |
| Aug. 17, 1999 | Marlon Williams | B | W/F | Helen Bedsole |
| Sept. 16, 1999 | Everett Mueller | W | W/F | Charity Powers |
| Oct. 19, 1999 | Jason Joseph | B | Jeffrey Anderson | |
| Nov. 9, 1999 | Thomas Royal, Jr. | B | Kenny Wallace | |
| Dec. 9, 1999 | Andre Graham | B | W/F | Sheryl Stack |
| Jan. 10, 2000 | Douglas Thomas | W | W/F W/M |
Kathy Wiseman James Wiseman |
| Jan. 13, 2000 | Steve Roach | W | W/F | Mary Ann Hughes |
| March 16,2000 | Lonnie Weeks, Jr. | B | H/M | Jose Cavazos |
| July 6, 2000 | Michael Clagett | W | W/M W/F F~M F~1 M |
Wendel Parrish Karen Rounds Lam Van Son Abdelaziz Gren |
| August 30, 2000 | Russel Burket | W | 2W/F | Katherine Tafelski Ashley Tafelski |
| Sept. 14, 2000 | Derek Barnabei | W | W/F | Sarah Wisnosky |
| Oct. 10, 2000 | Bobby Ramdass | B | F~2 M | Mohammad Kayani |
| Dec. 6, 2000 | Christopher Goins | B | 3B/M, 2B/F | James Randolf, Jr.,Daphne Jones, Nicole Jones,David Jones, Robert Jones |
| March 1, 2001 | Thomas Akers | W | W/M | Wesley Smith |
| October 18, 2001 | Christoher Beck | W | 2W/M 1W/F | Florence Marks, William Miller, David Kaplan |
| March 14, 2002 | James Earl Patterson | W | W/F | Joyce Aldridge |
| April 2, 2002 | Daniel Lee Zirkle | W | 2WF | Jessica Shifflett, Christina Zirkle |
| June 12, 2002 | Walter Mickens, Jr. | B | W/M | Timothy Hall |
| November 14, 2002 | Aimal Kahn Kasi | F~2 | 2W/M | Frank Darling, Lansing Bennett |
| April 9, 2003 | Earl Bramblett | W | 1W/M, 3W/F | Blaine Hodges, Teresa Hodges, Winter Hodges, Anah Hodges |
| July 22, 2003 | Bobby Swisher | W | 1W/F | Dawn McNees Snyder |
| March 18, 2004 | Brian Lee Cherrix | W | W/F | Tessa Van Hart |
| March 31, 2004 | Dennis Orbe | W | W/M | Richard Sterling Burnett |
| July 22, 2004 | Mark Bailey | W/F W/M |
Katherine Bailey Nathan Bailey |
|
| August 18, 2004 | James Hudson | W | W/M W/M W/F |
Walter Stanley Cole Thomas Wesley Cole Patsy Ayers Cole |
| September 9, 2004 | James Reid | B | B/F | Annie V Lester |
| April 27, 2006 | Dexter Lee Vinson | B | W/F | Angela Felton |
| June 20, 2006 | Brandon Hedrick | W | B/F | Lisa Crider |
| July 27, 2006 | Michael Lenz | W | W/M | Brent Parker |
| Nov. 9, 2006 | John Yancey Schmitt | W | B/M | Earl Shelton Dunning |
| May 27, 2008 | Kevin Green | B | W/F | Patricia Vaughan |
| June 25, 2008 | Robert Yarbrough | B | W/M | Cyril Hamby |
| July 10, 2008 | Kent Jackson | B | W/F | Beulah Kaiser |
| July 24, 2008 | Christopher Scott Emmett | W | W/M | John Langley |
| Feb. 19, 2009 | Edward Nathaniel Bell | B | W/M | Ricky Timbrook |
| Nov. 11, 2009 | John Allen Muhammad | B | M M M F F M M M F |
James Martin James Buchanan Premkumar Walekar Sarah Ramos Lori Lewis-Rivera Pascal Charlot Dean Meyers Kenneth Bridges Linda Franklin |
| Nov. 17, 2009 | Larry Bill Elliott (electrocuted) | W | W/F W/M |
Dana Thrall Robert Finch |
| March 18, 2010 | Paul Warner Powell (electrocuted) | W | W/F | Stacie Reed |
| May 20, 2010 | Darik Walker | B | B/M B/M |
Clarence Elwood Stanley Beale |
| Sept. 24, 2010 | Teresa Lewis | W | W/M W/M |
Julian Lewis Charles Lewis |
| Aug. 18, 2011 | Jerry Terrell Jackson | B | W/F | Ruth Phillips |
| Jan. 16, 2013 | Robert C. Gleason | W | M M |
Harvey Watson Aaron Cooper |
| Oct. 1, 2015 | Alfredo R. Prieto | H | WF WM |
Rachael Raver Warren Fulton III |
| Jan. 18, 2017 | Ricky Javon Gray | B | W/M W/F W/F W/F |
Bryan Harvey Kathryn Harvey Stella Harvey Ruby Harvey |
| July 6, 2017 | William Morva | W | B/M W/M |
Derrick McFarland Eric Sutphin |
(Race: w=white; b=Afro-American; a=asian; h=hispanic. Sex:m=male; f=female)
*Foreign – Mexican national
**Foreign – Paraguayan national
~ Foreign- Vietnamese national
~1 Foreign- Moroccan national
~2 Foreign- Pakistani national
Condemned Prisoners who Committed Suicide on the Row
| Date of Death | Prisoner | Race | Victims’ Race/Sex | Victims’ Name |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dec. 6, 1983 | Manual Quintana Camego | H | H/F | Ophelia Quintero |
| Apr. 7, l987 | John Levasseur | A | W/F | Pamela Benner |
| June 13, 1993 | Wayne DeLong | W | B/M | George Taylor |
| Mar. 1, 2001 | David Overton | W | W/M | Edgar Williams |
| February 23, 2004 | Jeffery Remington | W | M | Brent Parker |
Died While Incarcerated on Death Row
| Date of Death | Prisoner | Race | Victims’ Race/Sex | Victims’ Name |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Oct. 28, 1993 | Delasandro Barber | B | W/M | Williams Geddes |
| Dec. 28 2001 | Enrico Alaia | Todd Taylor/ Terry Garner |