Christopher Leroy Collings was executed in Missouri on Tuesday for the rape and murder of a 9-year-old girl.
Collings, 49, died by lethal injection at 6:10 p.m. CST at the Potosi Correctional Center in Bonne Terre.
“Right or wrong I accept this situation for what it is,” Collings said in a written final statement. “To anyone that I have hurt in this life I am sorry. I hope that you are able to get closure and move on.”
Collings is the 23rd inmate to be executed in the U.S. this year and the fourth in the state of Missouri.
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The U.S. Supreme Court declined to grant a stay of execution on Monday.
“Mr. Collings has received every protection afforded by the Missouri and United States Constitutions, and Mr. Collings’ conviction and sentence remain for his horrendous and callous crime,” Governor Michael Parson said in a statement on Monday. “The State of Missouri will carry out Mr. Collings’ sentence according to the Court’s order and deliver justice.”
This image provided by the Missouri Department of Corrections shows Christopher Collings, who was convicted of raping and strangling a 9-year-old girl in 2007. Collings was executed on Tuesday. This image provided by the Missouri Department of Corrections shows Christopher Collings, who was convicted of raping and strangling a 9-year-old girl in 2007. Collings was executed on Tuesday. Missouri Department of Corrections via AP
In 2007, Collings kidnapped Rowan Ford, the 9-year-old stepdaughter of one of his friends, according to court records. He was found guilty of raping the child and strangling her with chicken wire.
Collings has said that he did not intend to kill Ford, but he panicked when she recognized him. He had lived with her family for several months that year.
Ford’s body was found in a cave about a week after her disappearance. An autopsy ruled that she died due to strangulation.
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Ford’s stepfather, David Wesley Spears, was also charged with rape and murder related to the incident. He had confessed to sexually assaulting and killing Ford, but Collings denied his involvement.
Prosecutors withdrew the murder charge in 2012.
Spears accepted a plea deal, agreeing to plead guilty to endangering the welfare of a child and hindrance of prosecution. He was sentenced to 11 years in prison and released in 2015.
“I am so proud of the girl that she was turning out to be,” Rowan’s older sister, Ariane Macks, Ford’s sister, told USA TODAY. “A part of me died when my sister died. I did lose my ray of sunshine.”
Macks said Collings deserved to be sentenced to death for killing Ford.
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“I wanted him dead, I still do…but they could have done something better than lethal injection because he’s going out easy,” she said. “I cannot even imagine the pain when [Rowan] was strangled. Chris being so tall and so big [compared] to my little sister, she didn’t have a fighting chance.”
In Colling’s clemency petition, his attorneys said he suffered from a brain abnormality that caused “functional deficits in awareness, judgment and deliberation, comportment, appropriate social inhibition, and emotional regulation” and he experienced abuse as a child. Parson denied the petition.
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COLUMBIA — The Missouri Gaming Commission reported over $500 million in revenue in December alone. They expect this number to increase ahead of the Super Bowl.
For the first time, football fans in Missouri are able to legally wager on the Super Bowl this year. This is after sports betting officially went online for Missourians in December 2025.
“Personally, I was surprised at the volume of bets that were still taking place, despite the fact that there was no big single event that people might have been betting on, like the Super Bowl,” said Jan Zimmerman, chairman for the Missouri Gaming Commission.
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Zimmerman said that she’s expecting the Super Bowl to have a big impact on revenue, especially with the ability to bet from your couch. Missouri has seen a significant increase in mobile sports betting apps. These apps allow users to wager money from their homes.
“Now they’ll be able to use that mobile app, and they’ll be able to do that wherever they’re located when they’re watching that big game,” Zimmerman said.
The American Gaming Association expects Americans to legally wager a record $1.76 billion on the 2026 Super Bowl.
“No single event brings fans together like the Super Bowl, and this record figure shows just how much Americans enjoy sports betting as part of the experience,” said Bill Miller, President and CEO of the American Gaming Association, in a news release. “By choosing legal, regulated sportsbooks, fans are having fun while supporting a safe and responsible market.”
For the second time in program history, Missouri State football will be represented in the Super Bowl.
After the Seattle Seahawks beat the Los Angeles Rams in the NFC Championship to clinch their spot in Super Bowl LX, it meant that ex-Bears running back Jacardia Wright has a chance to win his first Super Bowl ring.
Wright originally committed to Kansas State out of St. Teresa High School in Illinois and played there for three years before transferring to Missouri State. With the Bears, he played from 2022-24, finishing with over 3,500 yards from scrimmage and 33 total touchdowns. He was named an all-Missouri Valley Conference performer in both 2023 and 2024.
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Professionally, Wright went undrafted but signed with the Seahawks after the draft. He made his first NFL appearance in Seattle’s Week 3 win over the New Orleans Saints, rushing for 20 yards. Following that game, he was placed on season-ending injured reserve, but he will still receive a ring should the Seahawks beat the New England Patriots on Sunday.
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Missouri State is still looking for its first Super Bowl champion. The program’s only other Super Bowl participant, offensive lineman Jason Whittle, played for the New York Giants in Super Bowl XXXV, but New York lost to the legendary 2000 Baltimore Ravens, 34-7.
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Ex-Bears tight end Clay Harbor also warrants a mention. Harbor played for the 2016 Patriots, a team that went on to beat the Atlanta Falcons in Super Bowl LI. However, he only played sparingly in three games before getting released by New England following Week 4 of that year and spent the remainder of the season with the Detroit Lions, so he did not receive a ring.
CAPE GIRARDEAU, Mo. (AP) — Brendan Terry had 22 points, Luke Almodovar scored 21 and Southeast Missouri State beat Southern Indiana 90-65 on Saturday, upping the Redhawks’ winning streak to six.
Terry added eight rebounds and five assists for the Redhawks (15-10, 10-4 Ohio Valley Conference). Almodovar made 6 of 12 shots and 9 of 10 free throws. Marqueas Bell scored 12 on 5-for-7 shooting.
The Screaming Eagles (5-19, 2-12) were led by Ismail Habib’s 20 points. Amaree Brown added 17 points and five assists. Cardell Bailey totaled 10 points and seven rebounds.
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The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.
