Alabama

Alabama executes man who killed 5 and asked to be put to death

Published

1 year ago

October 18, 2024

Alabama executes man who killed 5 and asked to be put to death

This undated photo from the Alabama Department of Corrections shows Derrick Dearman, who was executed by lethal injection in Alabama on Oct. 17, 2024.

AP//Alabama Department of Corrections

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AP//Alabama Department of Corrections

ATMORE, Ala. — Alabama executed a man Thursday who admitted to killing five people with an ax and gun during a drug-fueled rampage in 2016 and dropped his appeals and asked to be put to death.

Derrick Dearman, 36, was pronounced dead at 6:14 p.m. Thursday at Holman prison in southern Alabama. He pleaded guilty to the killings that prosecutors said began when he broke into the home where his estranged girlfriend had taken refuge.

Strapped to a gurney in the Alabama execution chamber, Dearman spoke to the family members of the victims and to his own family in his final statement. “Forgive me. This is not for me. This is for you,” he said to the victims’ families before adding, “I’ve taken so much.” He closed by telling his own family, “Y’all already know I love y’all.” Some of his words were inaudible.

The lethal injection was carried out after Dearman dropped his appeals this year and asked that his execution go forward. “I am guilty,” he wrote in an April letter to a judge, adding that “it’s not fair to the victims or their families to keep prolonging the justice that they so rightly deserve.”

Dearman’s execution was one of two planned Thursday in the U.S. Robert Roberson in Texas was scheduled to be the nation’s first person put to death for a murder conviction tied to the diagnosis of shaken baby syndrome, in the 2002 death of his 2-year-old daughter. The Texas Supreme Court halted his execution Thursday night.

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Killed on Aug. 20, 2016, at the home near Citronelle, about 30 miles (50 kilometers) north of Mobile, were Shannon Melissa Randall, 35; Joseph Adam Turner, 26; Robert Lee Brown, 26; Justin Kaleb Reed, 23; and Chelsea Randall Reed, 22. Chelsea Reed, who was married to Justin Reed, was pregnant when she was killed. All of the victims were related by blood or marriage.

In a statement read by the Alabama prison commissioner, a man who lost his daughter, sister and brother in the killings, wrote there were no words to describe the impact the murders had on him and his family. He said Dearman got to say a final goodbye to his family, but they did not.

“I so long for a final goodbye to my daughter and I would have loved to meet my grandchild,” Bryant Henry Randall, the father of Chelsea Randall Reed wrote. He said his siblings did not get to see their children grow up.

“I was stripped in many ways of happiness and the bond of family by your senseless act,” he wrote of Dearman.

Robert Brown, the father of Robert Lee Brown, told reporters that his family will “suffer for the rest of their lives.”

“This don’t bring nothing back,” he said. “I can’t get my son back or any of them back.”

The execution started about 5:58 p.m., but it is unclear when the drugs began flowing. At one point, Dearman raised his head and looked around the chamber as if to inquire when they were starting. He soon after appeared to lose consciousness.

His left arm moved slightly after a guard performed a consciousness check — which involves shouting his name and pinching his arm — to make sure he is not awake when the final lethal drugs are given. Alabama Corrections Commissioner John Hamm said Dearman was not awake and the arm movement was not a sign of consciousness.

Executions are on the rise in the U.S., even as public support wanes

When the curtains to the viewing room closed at about 6:08 p.m., his father, who was in the same viewing room as media witnesses, sobbed and repeatedly called out his son’s name.

The day before the killing, Joseph Turner, the brother of Dearman’s girlfriend, brought her to their home after Dearman became abusive toward her, according to a judge’s sentencing order.

Dearman had shown up at the home multiple times that night asking to see his girlfriend and was told he could not stay there. Sometime after 3 a.m., he returned when all the victims were asleep, according to a judge’s sentencing order. He worked his way through the house, attacking the victims with an ax taken from the yard and then with a gun found in the home, prosecutors said. He forced his girlfriend, who survived, to get in the car with him and drive to Mississippi.

As he was escorted to jail, Dearman blamed the rampage on drugs, telling reporters that he was high on methamphetamine when he went into the home and that the “drugs were making me think things that weren’t really there happening.”

Dearman initially pleaded not guilty but changed his plea to guilty after firing his attorneys. Because it was a capital murder case, Alabama law required a jury to hear the evidence and determine whether the state had proven the case. The jury found Dearman guilty and unanimously recommended a death sentence.

Before he dropped his appeal, Dearman’s lawyers argued that his trial counsel failed to do enough to demonstrate Dearman’s mental illness and “lack of competency to plead guilty.”

The Equal Justice Initiative, which represented Dearman in the appeal, wrote on its website that Dearman “suffered from lifelong and severe mental illness, including bipolar disorder with psychotic features” and was executed “despite evidence that he suffers from serious mental illness.”

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Alabama

Alabama NAACP Releases 2026 Selma Jubilee Weekend Schedule

Published

2 hours ago

March 4, 2026

Press Room

Alabama NAACP Releases 2026 Selma Jubilee Weekend Schedule

The Alabama State Conference of the NAACP has announced its official schedule for the 2026 NAACP-sponsored Selma Jubilee Bridge Crossing Weekend, set for March 6–8 in Montgomery and Selma.

Held under the theme “A Time for Standing,” the annual commemoration honors the Foot Soldiers of the 1965 Selma-to-Montgomery marches and recognizes the legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., John Lewis and Rev. Jesse Jackson for their roles in advancing civil rights and voting access.

The three-day event will bring together national, state and local leaders, along with youth and college chapters, faith partners and community members for activities focused on reflection, education and civic engagement.

Scheduled events include a civic discussion titled “The New Civic Path” on March 6 at the Montgomery Interpretive Center at Alabama State University, followed by a Jubilee Gala that evening at Embassy Suites in Montgomery. On March 7, the Birmingham Metro Branch will host a bus trip to Selma, while a statewide civic engagement training will take place in Montgomery.

SEE ALSO: Bridge Crossing Jubilee to honor Rev. Jesse Jackson’s legacy in Selma
SEE ALSO: 16th Street Baptist Church: Keeping a Legacy Alive 63 Years Later

On March 8, participants will take part in the Selma Bridge Crossing Jubilee Parade, voter activation efforts, worship services at Brown Chapel AME Church and Tabernacle Baptist Church, and the traditional bridge crossing at the foot of the Edmund Pettus Bridge.

Organizers say the weekend will emphasize continued civic participation and community engagement across Alabama.

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March 6 — Alabama NAACP Selma Bridge Crossing Jubilee Gala 5:30PM Embassy Suites by Hilton, 300 Tallapoosa St, Montgomery, AL 36104

March 7 — NAACP Birmingham Metro Branch Selma Bridge Crossing Jubilee Bus Trip 8AM–5PM Broad Street and Water Avenue in Selma Alabama

March 7 — Alabama State NAACP Statewide Civic Engagement Training 8–4:15PM Homewood Suites, 7800 EastChase Pkwy, Montgomery, AL 36117

March 8 — Alabama State NAACP in the Selma Bridge Crossing Jubilee Parade 8AM–10AM Begins at 1722 Broad St and concludes at the National Voting Rights Museum

March 8 — Alabama NAACP Statewide Bridge Crossing Jubilee Bus Trip 8AM–5PM Alabama State University, Untenese and Mobile Branch and University of Alabama, Oakwood University, Broad Street and Water Avenue, Selma

March 8 — Alabama NAACP Selma Bridge Crossing Jubilee Participation in Worship Services 10AM–2PM Brown Chapel AME Church and Tabernacle Baptist Church, Selma

March 8 — Alabama NAACP Youth and College Civic Engagement Voter Activation 8AM–2PM Broad Street and Water Ave, Selma

March 8 — Alabama NAACP Statewide Bridge Crossing 11:15PM – Line up Alabama NAACP Tent on Waters Ave or at the foot of the Edmund Pettus Bridge, Selma

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Alabama

3 Alabama players who helped their draft stock at 2026 NFL combine

Published

14 hours ago

March 3, 2026

Press Room

3 Alabama players who helped their draft stock at 2026 NFL combine

Each player had a pivotal role on the Crimson Tide in 2025.

Alabama had a multitude of former players who performed at an elite level at the NFL combine this past weekend.

Former Alabama star quarterback Ty Simpson was among those who put his talents on full display in Indianapolis, as Simpson continues to emerge as a top quarterback prospect available in April’s draft.

Numerous Crimson Tide stars on both sides of the football were able to have an excellent showing at the combine as well, with each playmaker a vital component to the Tide’s success in 2025.

Here are three Alabama players who helped their draft stock rise at the NFL combine.

Ty Simpson, Quarterback

Simpson is widely regarded as the best quarterback prospect available outside of Indiana’s Fernando Mendoza. The talented redshirt junior put on an absolute show at the NFL combine, as Simpson delivered multiple perfect throws and put his talents on full display throughout Saturday’s events.

The former Alabama star is a candidate to potentially shine day one in his campaign in the NFL, as Simpson’s draft stock continues to rise prior to April.

Jam Miller, Running Back

Miller is an extremely fast and athletic running back, despite struggling in the Tide’s backfield last season. The star running back recorded an impressive 4.43u 40-yard dash time, as Miller could very easily shine in the NFL next season with consistent playing time.

Miller was nothing short of elite throughout his entire performance at the combine in Indianapolis, as the former Tide running back continues to rise in a multitude of draft rankings around the football world.

Kadyn Proctor, Offensive Tackle

Proctor played a crucial role on Alabama’s offensive line last season. The star lineman reportedly slimmed down prior to the NFL combine, as Proctor displayed elite speed and athleticism throughout Sunday’s combine in Indianapolis.

Proctor is widely expected to be a mid-to-late first round selection in April, as the talented lineman’s efforts during the combine could quickly begin to work in Proctor’s favor during next month’s draft.

The 2026 NFL draft will take place in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania starting on April 23, as each Crimson Tide star will look to shine throughout their rookie campaign in the NFL.

Contact/Follow us @RollTideWire on X (formerly Twitter) and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Alabama news, notes and opinion.

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Alabama

Husband, 19, fatally shot wife, 24, himself at Alabama hospital moments after welcoming their first child

Published

1 day ago

March 3, 2026

Press Room

Husband, 19, fatally shot wife, 24, himself at Alabama hospital moments after welcoming their first child

A husband fatally shot his wife before turning the gun on himself at an Alabama hospital just moments after they welcomed their first child on Sunday.

Kynath Terry Jr., 19, gunned down 24-year-old Precious Johnson before fatally shooting himself inside the Baptist Health Brookwood Hospital around 9:30 p.m. Sunday night, WTVM 13 reported.

Johnson delivered a healthy baby just before she was murdered. It’s not immediately clear if the baby was present during the shooting, but police said that Terry and Johnson were the only ones injured.

Terry’s mother told the outlet that the couple were having some marital issues leading up to Johnson’s due date, but nothing that made her fear her son would become violent.

She told the outlet that Terry completed Army National Guard training before tying the knot with Johnson.

She noted that Johnson didn’t want Terry’s side of the family at the hospital for her child’s birth, but it’s unclear if anyone from the mother-to-be’s own family was there.

The hospital was plunged into a lockdown “out of an abundance of caution” while police investigated reports of a shooting. It wasn’t lifted until hours later when they determined there was “no active threat to patients, team members or the public,” the outlet reported.

The Homewood Police Department described the tragedy as “an apparent murder-suicide and is domestic in nature.”

Danne Howard, the president of the Alabama Hospital Association, told the outlet that the chilling attack “was an isolated incident” unlike anything she’d encountered during her three decades working in the state.

Howard said, in the wake of the tragedy, the Baptist Health Brookwood Hospital would undergo a security overhaul implementing “lessons learned” from a mandated after-action report.

Just three months ago, in a town six miles outside of Homewood, a beloved sports reporter was fatally shot by her husband before taking his own life. Their 3-year-old son, who was unharmed, led his grandfather to his parents’ bodies.

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