Terry Hankins

Terry Lee Hankins, 34, was executed by lethal injection on 2 June 2009 in Huntsville, Texas for the murder of his wife and stepchildren.

On Sunday, 26 August 2001, Hankins, then 26, shot his 34-year-old wife, Tammy, in the head with a .45-caliber pistol while she was sleeping in their trailer home in Mansfield, near Fort Worth. The next day, Hankins killed his stepchildren, Kevin, 12, and Ashley, 10, in the same manner.

On Wednesday, 29 August, Tammy's mother, Linda Sheets, learned that Tammy had failed to open the restaurant she managed. Sheets then went to the childrens' schools and learned that they had not been in class since the previous Friday. Sheets and Tammy's sister, Melissa, went to the trailer and found the bodies. Each of them had been covered with bedding or clothing. Police officers found a pistol on the coffee table and an empty box for another handgun in the closet. They immediately suspected Hankins, because they had repeatedly been summoned to the home in recent months for domestic disturbances, fighting, and breaking and entering.

The next morning, Tammy Hankins' car was located in the parking lot of the apartment complex where Terry Hankins' girlfriend lived. Hankins was arrested there after a five-hour standoff. In the girlfriend's apartment, police recovered a pistol, a note from Hankins to the girlfriend, and a black notebook.

After his arrest, Hankins confessed to killing his wife and stepchildren. In addition, he confessed to the earlier murders of two other family members. In 2000, Hankins killed his half-sister, Pearl "Sissy" Stevenstar, 20, by bludgeoning her in the head with a jack stand. He then placed her body in a storage tub and hid it in a car at his father's shop. Stevenstar was the father of one of Hankins' children and was pregnant with another. Hankins also shot his father, Earnie, 55. Following Hankins' directions, police found the bodies of Earnie and Sissy. Their injuries matched Hankins' account of how he said he killed them.

Hankins also admitted murdering his stepchildren in an interview with a reporter, in which he described himself as a serial killer.

At his trial, Hankins pleaded not guilty. In some notes and documents that were presented into evidence, Hankins described himself as a "non-caring monster" and wrote, "I guess to sum it all up, I'm guilty of murder, incest, hatred, fraud, theft jealousy, envy." Although these notes and some blood and hair evidence incriminating Hankins were presented, the most damaging evidence was his confession given to police. Hankin's attorney sought to have this confession ruled inadmissible, claiming that his arrest was illegal because the arrest warrant was issued based on insufficient circumstantial evidence. The court disagreed, and a jury found Hankins guilty of capital murder in May 2002 and sentenced him to death.

On appeal, the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals agreed that Hankins' arrest was illegal, but nevertheless his confession was admissible because he was fully informed of his rights after his arrest, and he voluntarily waived his right to remain silent. The appeals court affirmed the conviction and sentence in April 2004. All of his subsequent appeals in state and federal court were denied.

"I am sorry for what I've done, and for all the pain and suffering my actions caused," Hankins said in his last statement at his execution. He also proclaimed his faith in Jesus. The lethal injection was then started. He was pronounced dead at 6:19 p.m.

Hankins' execution was attended by Ruthie Hedleston, who was the ex-wife of Hankins' good friend. Hedleston said that Hankins lived with them for two years and that he beat her. "The reason I was there was to make the feeling I've had for seven years go away - the fear of him," she said. "He has haunted me for seven years." After watching him die, she said, "I believed him that he's sorry, but that doesn't mean I can forgive him for what he did."

Hankins' execution was the 200th to be held during the tenure of Governor Rick Perry, who took office in December 2000. Before Perry, the highest number of executions held during a governor's tenure was 152, during George W. Bush's six years in office.