Alabama is scheduled to execute Derrick Dearman for the mass murder of five family members, including a pregnant woman who were all related to his girlfriend. Dearman used an ax and a gun to kill the victims as they slept in August 2016 in Citronelle. Dearman, who struggled with mental health and substance abuse issues from a young age, decided to drop his appeals and has written letters expressing his guilt and desire to repay his debt to society. His attorneys argue that the courts failed to consider his mental illness adequately.
Dearman was found guilty and sentenced to death in 2018 for the murders. He went on a drug-fueled rampage through the home, killing each victim one by one. He also kidnapped a baby after the murders, making stops before turning himself in. Dearman is set to be executed in Alabama by lethal injection and has expressed remorse for his actions.
The victims of the murders were two couples, Joseph Turner and Shannon Randall, and Justin Reed and Chelsea Reed, as well as Robert Brown and Laneta Lester. The Reed’s were high school sweethearts expecting their first child, and the others were family members spending the night.
Dearman’s execution will take place at the William C. Holman Correctional Facility in Atmore on Thursday. Some family members of the victims plan to be present at the execution, along with members of the media. Dearman’s execution will be followed by another in Texas, and the next one in the nation is scheduled for November in South Carolina.
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