Texas executes Jamaal Howard by lethal injection for 2000 murder

Who's involved

• Jamaal HowardMan executed for 2000 murder of convenience store clerk
• Vickie SwartoutConvenience store clerk fatally shot during 2000 robbery
• Greg AbbottTexas Governor

The facts

• Howard was convicted of capital murder in the 2000 killing of Vickie Swartout, 42, shot once in the chest.^{2 3 4 5} Stated by 4 sources
• Swartout was fatally shot during a robbery at a store in Silsbee, located 100 miles northeast of Houston.^{2 3 4 5} Stated by 4 sources
• Surveillance video from the store showed Howard shooting Swartout.^{2 3 4} Stated by 3 sources
• Howard took $114 and a carton of cigarettes from the store.^{2 3 4} Stated by 3 sources
• Howard was 20 years old at the time of the 2000 killing.^{2 3 4} Stated by 3 sources
• Howard's execution was the first in the U.S. since Tennessee's failed execution of Christa Pike.^{2 3 4 5} Stated by 4 sources
• Howard became the seventh inmate executed in Texas in 2026 and the 30th in the nation.⁵
• Howard was executed with a lethal dose of pentobarbital.^{2 3 4 5} Stated by 4 sources

Who said what

These are statements and claims made by the people involved. They are reported, not verified.

• Howard's attorneys Howard is intellectually disabled and his execution should be halted.^{2 3 4}
• The state Howard has not presented evidence meeting requirements for intellectual disability claim.^{2 3 4}
• Howard's attorneys Texas should have issued a 30-day reprieve to examine pentobarbital records.⁵
• Lawyers (per headline) Sought to block Texas man's execution, citing failed execution of Christa Pike.¹