Three executions planned Thursday in three U.S. states

By Jon Herskovitz

AUSTIN, Texas (Reuters) - A trio of inmates are scheduled to be executed on Thursday, one each in Alabama, Florida and Texas, raising the possibility that U.S. prison authorities will carry out three death sentences on the same day for the first time since 2010.

The circumstances behind each case could halt any of the executions, including the one in Texas, where the convict received an unprecedented clemency recommendation. The state has conducted all three of this year's U.S. executions.

In Florida, questions were raised about holding an execution based on a majority, not unanimous, jury decision. In Alabama, lawyers have said the death row inmate is too ill to be executed.

On Tuesday, the Texas parole board in a unanimous decision recommended clemency for Thomas Whitaker, 38, based on his father's request.

The younger Whitaker was convicted of masterminding a 2003 plot against his family in which his mother Tricia, 51, and brother Kevin, 19, were killed. His father, Kent, was shot in the chest and survived.

A devout Christian and retired executive, Kent Whitaker said he had forgiven his son and that his family did not want him to be executed. In a clemency petition, the father said if the death penalty were implemented, it would make his pain worse.


Source: Yahoo News