Arkansas

Comforting the condemned: Inside the execution chamber with reverend focused on humanity

Published

2 years ago

June 16, 2024

Comforting the condemned: Inside the execution chamber with reverend focused on humanity

The Rev. Jeff Hood of Little Rock, Arkansas, has witnessed seven executions, including the nation’s most recent, that of David Hosier in Missouri. Hood helps ‘make them feel like a human being.’

When the Rev. Jeff Hood entered Missouri’s execution chamber this past week, he saw something hauntingly out of the ordinary: himself.

The window to the death chamber is one-way, meaning witnesses can see inmates but inmates cannot see who is watching them, Hood told USA TODAY, adding that every other execution he’s witnessed in other states has been in a room with a two-way window.

“It’s like a house of horrors,” Hood said. “It’s very, very bizarre.”

Hood walked in to find his friend, David Hosier − a man condemned to die for the 2009 murder of a former lover − strapped to the gurney. Hosier’s final words to the reverend before Missouri executed him: “Give ’em hell, Jeff.” Encouragement for Hood to keep fighting against the ultimate punishment.

As Hood put his hand on Hosier’s shoulder and began to read scripture, the intravenous line to deliver the lethal injection was near Hood’s elbow. Soon the reverend was able to see the pentobarbital − or as he calls it, “poison” − travel to end Hosier’s life.

When time of death was pronounced at 6:11 p.m. on Tuesday, Hosier became the seventh man Hood has seen executed.

Hood says witnessing executions makes him feel ‘like a murderer’

In 2022, the Supreme Court ruled that spiritual advisers must be allowed into execution chambers if death row inmates want them. Since then, the 40-year-old Hood − who lives in Little Rock, Arkansas with his wife and five children − has made it one of his missions to comfort the condemned in their final weeks, hours and minutes.

“My job is to come into their lives when they have six to three months left to live and become their best friend,” Hood told USA TODAY in an interview shortly after Hosier’s execution. “I become their best friend in order to be their best friend when they die.”

After seven executions, Hood said it doesn’t get any easier. If anything, it’s gotten harder.

“You feel like a murderer,” he said. “I’m called to be there for my guy. I’m called to pray. I’m called to read scripture. For all of my good intentions, I ultimately do nothing to stop it … I sit there and watch someone I love be murdered. In my inaction, I join the team of murderers.

“Being a part of the entire process is moral torture,” he added.

But Hood feels compelled to continue the work. Three inmates have asked him to accompany them to their executions in the next six months, and he works with about two dozen others throughout the country. This despite what he says have been numerous death threats against him and his family.

Why?

“Giving someone a voice, that’s the only thing that can make them feel like a human being,” he said.

Hood witnessed world’s first nitrogen gas execution

While Hood says every execution he’s witnessed is disturbing, he’s particularly haunted by that of Kenneth Eugene Smith, who was put to death by nitrogen gas in Alabama in January for his role in a murder-for-hire plot of a preacher’s wife in 1988.

“He literally was heaving back and forth, his face was hitting the front of the mask,” Hood says. “Mucus and slobber were drizzling down the front of the inside of the mask … It was like his veins all over his body were spidering and that there were ants up on his skin that were moving in every single direction.”

Marty Roney, a reporter with the Montgomery Advertiser − part of the USA TODAY Network − was also among witnesses and reported that Smith “appeared to convulse and shake vigorously for about four minutes after the nitrogen gas apparently began flowing through his full-face mask,” and that “it was another two to three minutes before he appeared to lose consciousness, all while gasping for air to the extent that the gurney shook several times.”

By appearances, lethal injections almost look like medical procedures, Hood said, while the nitrogen gas method “looks like a very vicious, horrible murder.”

Among Smith’s last words before he suffocated: “Tonight, Alabama caused humanity to take a step backward.”

In a statement following Smith’s execution, Alabama Attorney General Steve Marshall noted that it “marked the first time in the nation – and the world – that nitrogen hypoxia was used as the method of execution.”

The state “has achieved something historic,” he added. Alabama is set to execute another inmate, Alan Eugene Miller, with nitrogen gas in September. Miller, who was convicted of killing three people during two workplace shootings in Birmingham, Alabama, in 1999, is arguing against the method in a lawsuit, saying it’s cruel and unusual punishment.

Hood focuses on love at most recent execution

At the most recent execution Hood attended, that of David Hosier on June 11, he said he read from the Bible as he held the inmate’s shoulder.

As we was reading, Hood says Hosier repeated the phrase, “Give ’em hell,” an apparent reference to Hood’s hope to see the death penalty abolished.

Hosier was convicted in the 2009 shooting death of his former lover, Angela Gilpin, a married mother of two sons. Gilpin was seeing Hosier while she was separated from her husband but had decided to make her marriage work and broke it off with Hosier, who always maintained his innocence.

Hood said that Hosier was 100% convinced of his innocence and that he wasn’t just “putting on a show.” Hood gave Hosier absolution for his sins and did not confess to the crime in his final moments.

While Hood says he was being tortured by his own emotions during the process, his focus was on ensuring Hosier felt love and felt like a human being.

“I think that in the last few weeks, David got a lot of his dignity back,” Hood said.

“I’m the luckiest man on Earth,” Hosier said in a final statement sent to reporters shortly before he was put to death. “I’ve been able to speak the the truth of my innocence … I leave you all with love.”

Contributing: Marty Roney of the Montgomery Advertiser

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Arkansas

#7 Arkansas 5th After 36 Holes at the Valspar

Published

3 hours ago

March 23, 2026

Press Room

#7 Arkansas 5th After 36 Holes at the Valspar

PALM CITY, Fla. – #7 Arkansas sits in fifth place after two rounds Monday in the stacked 16-team Valspar Collegiate Invitational with a 36-hole, 18-under-par score of 550 (270-280), played at the Floridian National Golf Club (par 71).

Top-ranked Auburn leads the way at 538 (-30), followed by #10 Texas Tech (-28), #6 Texas (-20), #30 Florida State (-19) and Arkansas.

Of the 10 rounds played by the Razorbacks on Monday, eight were under par.

Erich Fortlage and Gerardo Gomez are tied for 10th at -6 (136).

Fortlage shot a career-best, bogey-free 65 (-6) in the morning sessions, posting three birdies on each nine, and he was in second place. Fortlage had an even-par round in the afternoon session with three birdies, a bogey and a double.

Gomez had four birdies and a bogey for an opening-round 67, matching his best total for 18 holes for the third time this season. In round two, Gomez turned in a 3-under 69 and moved up two spots into a nine-way tie for 10th.

John Daly II offset a double bogey on the par-5 7th with an eagle on the par-5 15th to finish with a 68 after 18 holes. In round two, Daly was 1-under and is tied for 25th (138 / -4).

Niilo Maki-Petaja carded two rounds of 70 and is tied for 38th (140) while Thomas Curry is tied for 54th (143) with rounds of 70-73.

The Valspar concludes with 18 holes on Tuesday.

VALSPAR COLLEGIATE INVITATIONAL
Host: Houston
Floridian National Golf Club
Palm City, Fla.
Par: 71 • 7,088 yards
Format: 5 count 4 ||36 holes Monday / 18 Holes Tuesday

RESULTS THRU RD2:
1 #1 Auburn   264-274=538 / -30
2 #10 Texas Tech    273-267=540 / -28
3 #6 Texas   268-280=548 / -20
4 #30 Florida State    269-280=550 / -19
5 #7 Arkansas    270-280=550 / -18
6 Houston   271-282=553 / -15
7 #23 Duke    280-274=554 / -14
T8 #14 Oklahoma    274-282=556 / -12
T8 #32 Texas A&M   277-279=556 / -12
10 #24 Southern Cal   277-281=558 / -10
T11 #13 Pepperdine   279-281=560 / -8
T11 #29 Wake Forest   286-274=560 / -8
13 #8 Arizona State   278-283=561 / -7
14 #17 North Carolina 282-280=562 / -6
15 Rice   282-291=571 / +5
16 Augusta   286-294=580 / +12

For more information on Arkansas Men’s Golf, X and Instagram.

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Arkansas

Arizona-Arkansas Sweet 16 tip time set – Arizona Sports

Published

15 hours ago

March 23, 2026

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Arizona-Arkansas Sweet 16 tip time set – Arizona Sports

The Sweet 16 matchup between No. 1 Arizona and No. 4 Arkansas is set for Thursday at 6:45 p.m. MST in San Jose.

The game will be televised on CBS during the first day of NCAA Tournament regional semifinal play.

The most recent Arizona-Arkansas meeting occurred in 1995, making this a rare date. For what it’s worth, Arkansas leads the all-time series 6-2 and five of the eight matchups took place in the 1990s.

The other Sweet 16 contest in the West Region will see No. 2 Purdue take on No. 11 Texas, which was a First Four winner. That game will tip at 4:10 p.m. Thursday, also on CBS.

Arizona last qualified for the Elite 8 in the 2014-15 season under the leadership of Sean Miller, who has the chance to face his former school as the head coach of Texas.

Arizona defeated the No. 9 Utah State Aggies in the Round of 32 Sunday, 78-66. Brayden Burries and Koa Peat were the catalysts in holding off the Aggies, despite battling foul trouble as they finished with 16 and 14 points, respectively.

Arkansas punched its ticket into the third round of the national tournament by holding off No. 12 High Point, 94-88, on Saturday. The Razorbacks needed 36 points and eight assists from SEC Player of the Year Darius Acuff Jr. and a couple of late missed 3s from the Panthers’ sharpshooting Chase Johnston to emerge victorious.

The John Calipari-led Razorbacks easily defeated No. 13 Hawaii in the Round of 64.

Tommy Lloyd has not coached the Wildcats past the Sweet 16 in four previous NCAA Tournaments, losing each of his three times in the round (2022, 2024, 2025). His team is poised to do so as a unanimous No. 1 in The Associated Press’ Top 25 rankings this season and with a 16-2 record against Quad 1 programs.

Arkansas ended as SEC Tournament champion, defeating Vanderbilt for its first title in 26 years. It finished tied for second with Alabama in the SEC regular-season standings. The Razorbacks, through conference tournament play, were No. 15 in the NCAA net rankings with an 8-8 Quad 1 record and perfect 18-0 mark against Quads 2-4.

Calipari, who is in his second season at Arkansas, led the Razorbacks to the Sweet 16 last season, where they narrowly lost to Texas Tech.

Arkansas most recently made the Elite 8 in 2022, which was its second of two consecutive trips.

Each basketball program possesses a national championship, the Wildcats being victors in 1997 and the Razorbacks in 1994.

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Arkansas

Arkansas alums total six medals on final day of World Indoors

Published

1 day ago

March 22, 2026

Press Room

Arkansas alums total six medals on final day of World Indoors

Shawn Price
March 22, 2026

TORUŃ, POLAND – Arkansas alums collected six medals on the final day of the World Indoor Championships, four medals in the 4 x 400m relay along with individual medals in the 1,500m and pole vault.

Rosey Effiong and Paris Peoples ran the second and third legs of the United States 4 x 400m relay that won the race in 3:25.81. It’s the sixth time for the Americans to claim World Indoor gold in the event.

Bailey Lear ran the opening leg in 51.47. Effiong split 50.83 as she moved USA from third to first on her carry. Peoples maintained the lead with a 52.02 carry. Then Shamier Little closed out the victory with a 51.49 anchor leg.

Finishing behind the Americans were the Netherlands (3:26.00) and Spain (3:26.04) with host Poland (3:26.17) fourth.

Arkansas’ winning time of 3:23.63 to win the NCAA Indoor title a week ago remains the world-leading time for 2026 and would better the World Indoor meet record of 3:23.85 set by USA in 2018.

Effiong produced the second fastest split in the final as her 50.83 only trailed the anchor leg of 50.10 generated by Great Britain’s Keely Hodgkinson, who won the 800m in a championship record of 1:55.30 on the same day. The British placed fifth in 3:28.09.

In the men’s 4 x 400m relay, the United States broke the championship record with a 3:01.52 victory. That bettered the previous mark of 3:01.77 set by Poland in 2018. It’s the 12th World Indoor relay title for the American men.

TJ Tomlyanovich ran the anchor leg for USA during the prelims, splitting 45.98 as the Americans ran 3:04.85 for third place in their heat, advancing to the final on time.

Tyrice Taylor ran third leg for Jamaica in the final, splitting 46.11 as they earned a bronze medal with a time of 3:05.99. In the prelims, Taylor ran second leg (46.14) as the Jamaicans advanced on time with a 3:05.68.

For the second consecutive World Indoor Championships, Tina Šutej earned a silver medals in the pole vault. She cleared 15-9 (4.80) to equal her season’s best and placed second to a 15-11 (4.85) clearance by Molly Caudrey of Great Britain. Three vaulters tied for bronze at 15-5 (4.70).

“Gosh, it’s my fourth medal from World Championships but I still have not got the gold one,” stated the 37-year-old Šutej, who collected indoor bronze in 2022 and outdoor bronze in 2025. “Today, I was so close to upgrading my collection. All season I have had jumps and great feelings. I came to Toruń like a leader but something went wrong at 4.85m. Maybe we had been waiting too long but something was broken. The longer the competition goes, the more troubles I have.

“It’s not easy for me to compete with girls who are younger 10 or 15 years than me but I’m proud I’m still very competitive. Let’s see what happens in the summer. Everyone says about my age. I know that I’m the oldest in the field but I feel good, I jump high and I’m going to continue at this level as long as I enjoy the competitions. I want to keep going and get my mark closer to five meters.”

Nikki Hiltz set a career best of 3:59.68 in finishing with a bronze medal in the 1,500m. The time ranks No. 3 on the U.S. all-time list. The previous best by Hiltz in the 1,500m was 4:02.32 to claim silver at the 2024 World Indoor.

Georgia Hunter Bell established a world-leading time of 3:58.53 for the victory while Australia’s Jessica Hull produced an Area record of 3:59.45 as the runner-up. Agathe Guillemot of France (3:59.71) was edged out of a medal by Hiltz in the final step to the finish line.

“It was fast,” noted Hiltz, who moved from fifth to third over the final lap (29.96 seconds). “I’ve been in a lot of tactical races this season and never broken four minutes so this was different for me. Sometimes you just have to trust your instincts. I think I was in fourth place until the very last step. It just shows you always have to run to the line. You never know what can happen.”

Representing Jamaica in the long jump, Nia Robinson placed fifth with a mark of 22-1.75 (6.75), which left her two inches from the bronze medal distance. It’s the highest finish for an Arkansas alum in the women’s long jump at a World Championship meet. Robinson improved her career best to 22-4.5 (6.82) this indoor season.

In the men’s long jump, Carey McLeod placed ninth with a leap of 26-2.25 (7.98) and was the second Jamaican in the field behind Tajay Gayle, who placed seventh at 26-7.75 (8.12).

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