NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WTVF) — Gov. Bill Lee said he will not intervene in the execution of Oscar Franklin Smith two days before his execution date.
Smith is set to die by lethal injection on May 22.
"After deliberate consideration of Oscar Franklin Smith’s request for clemency, and after a thorough review of the case, I am upholding the sentence of the State of Tennessee and do not plan to intervene."
In 2022, Oscar Franklin Smith was scheduled to receive a lethal injection for the 1989 killings of his estranged wife, Judith Robirds Smith, and her teenage sons — Jason Burnett and Chad Burnett. But an oversight in preparation for the lethal injection caused a delay. The execution method is the state’s preferred means.
Smith was convicted of killing the three in their Woodbine home in 1989. Throughout the years, Judith Smith had filed domestic violence charges against Smith. A relative, 8-years-old, found the family dead.
Smith has been on death row since the 90s. His legal team made numerous attempts to stop the execution, however, a federal judge denied his most recent motion.
His attorney Kelley Henry has been trying to stop Smith's execution by lethal injection.
In early April, Smith and death row inmate Byron Black asked Gov. Bill Lee for a reprieve on death row executions because of the state's lethal injection method.
They asked the governor to halt executions until March 1, 2026, when a trial on the constitutionality of Tennessee's new execution protocol is scheduled. That will happen at the end of the year.
“Governor Lee has, in the past, used his power to prevent Tennessee from making irreparable mistakes," Henry said. "We had hoped he would do so again. There is no principled reason to allow the State to resume executions before the court has an opportunity to hear all of the evidence about whether TDOC is sourcing its lethal chemicals legally, whether those chemicals are uncontaminated, unexpired, and undiluted, and whether the execution team is capable of carrying out its duties competently and constitutionally. Tennessee can do better than this."
Four executions are slated for this year. This is Smith's fourth execution date.
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Happy Birthday to the YMCA of Middle TN. They just celebrated their 150th anniversary! A lot has changed with the Y over the years. I have personally seen some of that firsthand when I was a long-time board member at the Northwest Family Y and part of their Black Achievers Program. Forrest Sanders has a look back.
- Lelan Statom
