Mississippi
MS death row inmate Charles Crawford petitioned to halt his execution. See status
Executions in Mississippi: What to know
A look at the process of determining when and how a prisoner on death row in Mississippi should be executed.
As of 1:30 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 14, the U.S. Supreme Court has yet to issue a ruling on Mississippi death row inmate Charles Ray Crawford’s petition to halt his scheduled execution.
Crawford’s execution is set for 6 p.m. Wednesday, Oct. 15, at the Mississippi State Penitentiary at Parchman.
Court records filed Oct. 1 show Crawford’s legal team asked the U.S. Supreme Court to block his execution and to take up his case, saying his Sixth Amendment rights were violated when his then-attorneys conceded his guilt to the jury during his criminal trial, despite Crawford’s objections.
The State of Mississippi argued in its response filed Oct. 9 that Crawford’s filings are a last-minute effort to halt his execution, years after the case was decided and far too late to be raised now.
According to Mississippi Gov. Tate Reeves, as of Monday, Oct. 13, all necessary procedures for Crawford’s execution are being followed under the guidance that “justice must be served.”
Crawford, now 59, was convicted and sentenced to death in 1994 for the 1993 kidnapping, rape and murder of Kristy Ray from her Tippah County home in the Chalybeate community. Ray was a 20-year-old student at Northeast Mississippi Community College student.
In 1993, Crawford was out on bond awaiting trial on charges of aggravated assault and rape. Four days before the trial, Crawford abducted Ray from her parents’ home in Chalybeate — about 255 miles north of Jackson. Crawford told authorities he did not remember the incident but later led them to the body buried in leaves in a wooded area.
Attorney General Lynn Fitch’s office has sought an execution date for Crawford twice in less than a year, first in November 2024 and again, in June 2025.
Crawford, has spent more than 30 years on death row. Crawford’s execution will be the second this year in Mississippi.
Richard Jordan was put to death on June 25. Jordan was the state’s longest-serving and oldest death row inmate. Jordan was executed around 6:15 p.m. by lethal injection one month after his 79th birthday. He received his last meal at 4 p.m.
Pam Dankins is the breaking news reporter for the Clarion Ledger. Email her at pdankins@gannett.com.