Columbia, South Carolina – Stephen Stanko, a 57-year-old man convicted of a brutal double murder in 2005, was executed by lethal injection on Friday at the Broad River Correctional Institution, marking the fourth execution in the United States this week.
Stanko was pronounced dead at 6:34 p.m. local time (2234 GMT), according to a statement from the South Carolina Department of Corrections. He had been given the choice of execution method—firing squad, electric chair, or lethal injection—and opted for the latter.
Convicted of the murders of his girlfriend, 43-year-old Laura Ling, and 74-year-old Henry Turner, a friend, Stanko also raped Ling’s teenage daughter and attempted to kill her by slitting her throat. The girl survived and later testified against him during the trial.
In a final statement delivered through his attorney, Stanko expressed remorse for his crimes:
“I am truly sorry for the pain and loss that I caused. Sorry is never enough, but that does not mean it should not be said.”
A Week of Death Row Activity Across the U.S.
Stanko’s execution was the fourth carried out in the U.S. this week alone, reflecting a recent surge in capital punishment enforcement.
On Thursday, John Hanson, 61, was executed by lethal injection in Oklahoma. He had been convicted of carjacking and kidnapping 77-year-old Mary Bowles from a mall in Tulsa, before killing her and a witness, Jerald Thurman.
Hanson had originally been serving a life sentence for bank robbery in Louisiana until the Trump administration approved his transfer to Oklahoma for prosecution and execution.
Tuesday saw two executions:
- Anthony Wainwright, 54, was put to death by lethal injection in Florida for the 1994 rape and murder of 23-year-old nursing student Carmen Gayheart, a mother of two.
- Gregory Hunt, 65, was executed using nitrogen gas in Alabama for the 1988 rape and murder of his girlfriend, Karen Lane, 32. His death marked the third use of nitrogen hypoxia as a method of execution in the U.S.
National Trends and Controversy
So far this year, 23 executions have been carried out in the United States:
- 18 by lethal injection
- 2 by firing squad
- 3 by nitrogen hypoxia, a method involving suffocation via nitrogen gas administered through a mask
The use of nitrogen gas has been sharply criticized by human rights organizations and UN experts, who describe it as cruel and inhumane.
Currently, 23 U.S. states have abolished the death penalty, while three others—California, Oregon, and Pennsylvania—have active moratoriums in place.
President Donald Trump, a vocal supporter of capital punishment, advocated for its expanded use, particularly for what he described as “the vilest crimes.”
As the national debate over the ethics and effectiveness of the death penalty continues, this week’s executions have reignited discussion on both its moral implications and its role in the American justice system.
