South Carolina executed inmate Freddie Owens, marking the state’s first execution in 13 years due to previous difficulties obtaining lethal injection drugs, AP News reports.
Owens, 46, was convicted for the 1997 murder of a convenience store clerk during a robbery and was sentenced to death after he confessed to killing a fellow inmate while incarcerated. His appeals, including one to the US Supreme Court, were denied, and he chose not to make a final statement. Owens was put to death by lethal injection, using a new protocol involving the sedative pentobarbital.
His execution marks the first in the state since 2011. South Carolina has now resumed its death penalty system after legal changes and may carry out more executions soon.
