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State of Texas carries out nation’s first execution of the year

On January 15, 2020, the State of Texas executed John Gardner for the 2005 death of his estranged wife, Tammy Gardner. Gardner, who recently turned 64 years old, reportedly had one leg and used a wheelchair. He was convicted and sentenced to death by a Collin County jury in 2006. 

Read more about his case from The Marshall Project and the Texas Tribune.

Gardner was the first person put to death in the United States in 2020.  There currently are seven additional executions scheduled to take place in Texas through May. 

In 2019, the State of Texas executed nine people. It accounted for 41% of the executions nationwide.