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Texas Executes Charles Victor Thompson in First U.S. Execution of 2026

Final appeals citing flawed medical care were rejected, clearing the way for the lethal injection.

Overview

  • Thompson, 55, was pronounced dead at 6:50 p.m. CST at the Huntsville Unit following a lethal injection.
  • The U.S. Supreme Court denied a last-minute stay, and the Texas parole board had earlier declined his commutation request.
  • Convicted for the 1998 shootings of Dennise Hayslip and Darren Cain, Thompson returned to Hayslip’s apartment hours after police escorted him away and opened fire.
  • He apologized in his final statement and asked the victims’ families to find forgiveness, as relatives and Harris County District Attorney Sean Teare witnessed the execution.
  • His case featured a 2001 vacated death sentence over an undercover investigator, a 2005 resentencing and jail escape, and Texas now has additional executions scheduled through mid-May.