Texas 400

Johnny Ray Conner became the 400th condemned inmate Texas has put to death in the “modern era.” Like many who came before him, Conner had a plausible claim of factual innocence and was convicted on facts that could have just as well produced a not guilty verdict.

Unlike most before him, a Texas federal district court determined Conner's had received an unfair trial and should be retried. Despite the district court's determination that Conner's received an unfair trial, the Fifth Circuit, as it often does, determined Conner's should die.

Conner was killed for for the 1998 shooting death of Houston convenience store clerk Kathyanna Nguyen. She was murdered during a robbery. Three people had identified Conner as the shooter, although each gave identification statements at odds with the others. Three other people failed to identify Conner as teh shooter.

Texas resumed executing inmates on Dec. 7, 1982 when it killed Charlie Brooks ushering in Texas’s “modern era” of executions. Conner becomes the 21st condemned inmate to be put to death this year in Texas; there are 3 more executions set for this month and 5 more in September in Texas. Conner becomes the 161st condemned inmate to be put to death since Rick Perry became Governor of Texas in 2001. The figure represents the most executions carried out during the tenure of any single state governor in American history. Conner becomes the 35th condemned inmate to be put to death this year in the USA and the 1092nd overall since the nation resumed executions on January 17, 1977.