On March 27, 2014, the State of Texas carried out its fourth execution of the year, putting Anthony Doyle to death for the murder of 37-year-old Hyun Mi Cho in January 2003. The victim was delivering food to Doyle’s family home in Rowlett (Dallas County) when he demanded money from her and then hit her with a baseball bat. He then hid her body and stole her phone, credit cards, and car.
Anthony Doyle was 93 days past his 18th birthday at the time of the crime. The U.S. Supreme Court ruled in 2005 that the death penalty constitutes cruel and unusual punishment for juvenile offenders – those under the age of 18 at the time of the crime.
On the day of Doyle’s execution, a state judge ordered the Texas Department of Criminal Justice (TDCJ) to disclose the source of its new supply of pentobarbital, which is the sole drug now used in the lethal injection process in Texas. Citing “security concerns,” officials with TDCJ had refused to name the source of the drug that will be used to execute inmates as of April 1st. Three executions are scheduled to take place in Texas in April.
Dallas County accounts for 53 executions since 1982, behind only Harris County. It accounts for 20% of new death sentences imposed in the last six years.
Read more about Anthony Doyle and the latest developments regarding the lethal injection drug supply from Fox News and Reuters.