Inmates Sentenced to Death in Delaware

Executions in Delaware since 1992

The first execution (by hanging) to be carried out in Delaware was reportedly in September of 1662. Account of executions are sketchy until 1902, when formal records were first established to document facts. However, historical newspaper articles report that there were seven executions in Delaware from 1831-1902.

Between 1902 and 1946, twenty-five people were executed (by hanging) in the First State. Eight were white and seventeen were black. Only one female was executed during those years. She was May H. Carey who was hanged in 1935 for murder. Carey is the third woman in Delaware history to have been executed.

In 1955-1956, State Senator Frank Melson, a Wilmington attorney, attempted to abolish capital punishment in Delaware. The bill was voted on three times, and defeated, with one vote as narrow as "1 nay".

Efforts to abolish the death penalty succeeded in 1958. On April 2, 1958, Governor J. Caleb Boggs signed into law a bill abolishing the death penalty. Delaware became only the second state in the nation to abolish the death penalty. Missouri was the first, doing so in 1917.

In November-December of 1961, the Delaware Legislature passed a bill reinstating the death penalty. When the bill was sent to Governor Elbert N. Carvel on December 12, 1961, he vetoed it. Both the Senate and House overrode the veto. On December 18, 1961, the death penalty in Delaware was reinstated.

In June of 1986 legislation was enacted that made lethal injection the mode of execution. The law also stipulated that persons sentenced to death prior to the law's enactment have the choice of choosing their mode of execution (either hanging or lethal injection).

On April 11, 1994, Governor Thomas Carper signed into law legislation that mandates the time that an execution is to be carried out (between the hours of 12:01 a.m. and 03:00 a.m.).

Inmates sentenced to death are housed at the James T. Vaughn Correctional Center north of Smyrna, Delaware. Each inmate is classified to the highest security level appropriate for their behavior.

In 1986, the Department of Correction rebuilt the gallows and purchased a mobile lethal injection chamber in response to the pending law and the seemingly imminent execution of inmate Billy Bailey. Arrangements were also made to secure an anonymous and professional executioner and the substances required for the injections.

In 1991, the execution system went through yet another update. The gallows were refurbished to accommodate the court order to execute James W. Riley. Riley would not choose a method of execution; therefore, he was to be executed by hanging which was the original sentence. Riley received a stay of execution two days before the execution would have occurred.

Additionally, in 1991, the policy regarding the executioner was revised, primarily due to budgetary constraints. Instead of hiring a non-staff person to carryout the execution, a staff person was secured to perform the necessary execution duty. The job of the staff executioner is voluntary, and the person's identity is kept confidential.

In 1992, the pending execution of Steven Pennell required the Department to renovate the lethal injection chamber for use in compliance with the new Department of Correction's execution guidelines. The work on the chamber cost the Department $17,900.

The way the system was to function previously was to simply run the lethal substance from a control center behind a wall, through piping that was to be connected to the intravenous tubing in the arm of the person sentenced to death. The new system is a lot less complicated and simply calls for an intravenous bag and tubing to be inserted into the arm of the person sentenced to die. The lethal substances will be injected into the intravenous tubing by the executioner who is in a room separated from the sentenced person.

Also, in 1992, Delaware carried out the first execution in the state since 1946. The event attracted national attention from the media, organizations which protest the death penalty, and other State Department of Corrections. The man executed was Steven Brian Pennell, a convicted serial killer.

The execution of Pennell was carried out on March 14, 1992. The total cost to the Department in doing this was $47,085.00. The cost breakdown is as follows.


Reconstruction of Execution Chamber

$ 15,000.00
Purchase of Drugs for Injection

310.00
Purchase of other Execution Supplies

2,208.00
Personnel Overtime

25,192.00
Additional maintenance

2,900.00
Audio Equipment for media coverage

1,475.00
TOTAL

$ 47,085.00



The costs for Steven Pennell's execution were significantly higher than the costs of those that followed. The reason for the difference in the cost is: (1) Pennell's execution was the first time in more than 46 years Delaware had to carry out such an order; (2) the trailer in which the procedure would occur had to be renovated and repaired; and (3) significant overtime was accumulated. The Department deployed additional staff to maintain the highest level of security and ensure public safety. With each execution there are standard costs which include, but are not limited to: (1) the purchase of pharmaceuticals for the procedure; (2) salaries for all overtime staff; and (3) any maintenance or repairs needed on the execution trailer. Presently, the total cost to carry out an execution is approximately $16,000.

On January 25, 1996, Billy Bailey was the first person in nearly fifty years to be executed by hanging. Records indicate that prior to 1992, the last execution in Delaware took place in 1946. Forest Sturdivant, 34, was executed (by hanging) following a murder conviction.

In July 2003, the Department of Correction dismantled the State's only gallows because the last inmate eligible to be executed by hanging won a new trial and life sentence. This made the Delaware gallows obsolete. The structure was dismantled and disposed of in a way that prevented souvenir collecting.

ALL EXECUTIONS in the state of Delaware are carried out at the James T. Vaughn Correctional Center (formerly known as Delaware Correctional Center) in Smyrna. The facility houses both the execution chamber and the gallows. These areas are tightly secured and access to them is granted only during non-critical periods. That is, (1) when there is no scheduled execution, and (2) when maintenance work is not being done on the execution facility. Further, security at the prison reserves the right to decline requests for access for unstated reasons. The Department prohibits cameras and all transmitting and recording devices in these areas at all times. The Department of Correction constructed a new execution chamber on the grounds at the James T. Vaughn Correctional Center in the summer of 2000. The new execution chamber is a permanent structure. The execution of Dwayne L. Weeks was the first execution carried out in the new execution chamber.

Department of Correction personnel follow precise guidelines in carrying out an execution. Certain procedures are mandated by law while others are left to the discretion of the Department of Correction. The Law presently requires the Department to have no more than 10 official witnesses present during an execution. To ensure that we have the required number, several other individuals are selected and asked to serve as alternate witnesses in the event an official witness does not show or is unable to serve. All witnesses must report to a designated location at least one hour in advance of the scheduled execution for briefing purposes. The designated location is confidential. Those who may be selected to serve as witnesses include arresting officers, and Federal Officers included in the case, Police Chiefs in the state or a designee, a representative from the Victims Rights Bureau and Criminal Justice professionals. The witnesses are separated from the person being executed by a glass window.

Other witnesses that may be invited are the media. The Department of Correction has guidelines that determine who serves as media witnesses and the logistics of allowing for media coverage of an execution. What is factored into the decision is: (1) the allotted space in the witness room and (2) what will allow for adequate coverage without overburdening security during this critical period.

All media representatives interested in bidding for a media witness slot must be in good standing with the Department. Meaning, the individual cannot be barred from any DOC facilities nor can they be on probation with the Department's Community or Media Relations Offices for some media-related violation that occurred while in one of our facilities. During the two weeks prior to a scheduled execution, all media are encouraged to check their e-mail for instructions and updates pertaining to the execution.

http://doc.delaware.gov/information/..._history.shtml