US EditionMan convicted of killing a 15-year-old girl in her home in 2001 is executed by injection in Indiana
Ward was Indiana’s third person executed since the state resumed capital punishment after a 15-year pause, following his conviction for a 2001 rape and murder.
- At the Indiana State Prison in Michigan City, Roy Lee Ward, 53, was executed by injection Friday for the 2001 rape and murder of 15-year-old Stacy Payne.
- Last year, state officials of Indiana ended a 15-year pause on executions after obtaining pentobarbital, allowing the state to resume capital punishment.
- Authorities described the attack as involving a knife and dumbbell in the victim's family home near Dale, Indiana, about 30 miles east of Evansville, shaking a community of roughly 1,500 people.
- After more than 20 years in the courts, Ward exhausted his legal options and the Indiana Department of Correction said the process started shortly after midnight and he was pronounced dead at 12:33 a.m.; Indiana is one of two states barring media witnesses.
- Ward's attorneys raised concerns about pentobarbital storage, noted his recent autism spectrum disorder diagnosis, his skipped parole board interview, and last month the Indiana Supreme Court and Gov. Mike Braun denied relief.
57 Articles
57 Articles
Indiana executes Roy Lee Ward for teen's 2001 murder
Indiana executed Roy Lee Ward by lethal injection early Friday morning for the 2001 rape and murder of 15-year-old Stacy Payne in Spencer County.Ward, 53, was pronounced dead at 12:33 a.m. at the Indiana State Prison in Michigan City, marking the state's third execution since resuming capital punishment in 2024 after a 15-year hiatus.Ward was convicted of attacking Payne with a knife and dumbbell in her family's home near Dale on July 11, 2001. …
Indiana executes killer, rapist of 15-year-old girl, its third execution since resuming them last year
An Indiana man convicted in the 2001 rape and murder of a teenage girl was executed by injection in the state's third execution since resuming capital punishment last year.
Associated Press News
Indiana man convicted of 2001 rape and murder of 15-year-old girl is executed by injection
Indiana officials have executed a man convicted in the 2001 rape and murder of a teenage girl. Roy Lee Ward was put to death early Friday by injection at the Indiana State Prison in Michigan City.
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