Crawford, 59, was pronounced dead at 6:15 p.m. at the Mississippi State Penitentiary at Parchman following a lethal injection. His death marks the state’s second execution this year and the 38th nationwide in 2025, part of what experts say is a resurgence in the use of capital punishment across the United States.
In January 1993, Crawford abducted Kristy Ray from her parents’ home, left behind a ransom note, and took her to a secluded barn. He later confessed to raping and fatally stabbing her. At the time, he was already awaiting trial for other rape and assault charges.
In 1994, Crawford was convicted of capital murder and sentenced to death, with his prior rape conviction used as an aggravating factor. He also received decades-long prison terms for other violent crimes.
According to prison officials, Crawford spent his last day visiting with family members and a minister. For his final meal, he requested a double cheeseburger, french fries, peach cobbler and chocolate ice cream.
In his final statement before the execution, Crawford told his family, “I love you. I'm at peace. I've got God's peace.” He also told Kristy Ray’s family: “True closure and true peace, you cannot reach that without God.”
After the injection began, Crawford lay still on the gurney, breathing steadily for several minutes as his eyes occasionally fluttered. At 6:06 p.m., a masked prison official stepped forward and declared him unconscious. His breathing then grew labored, marked by heavy exhales, before slowing. As his breaths weakened, his body shook briefly and then became motionless. He was pronounced dead at 6:15.
Crawford’s attorneys pursued emergency appeals up to the final hours, filing motions with both the Mississippi Supreme Court and the U.S. Supreme Court. They argued his trial lawyers had violated his Sixth Amendment rights by conceding guilt over his explicit objections, an issue tied to the Court’s 2018 ruling in McCoy v. Louisiana.
The Mississippi Supreme Court dismissed the arguments as untimely and without merit. The U.S. Supreme Court declined to intervene, but Justices Sonia Sotomayor, Elena Kagan, and Ketanji Brown Jackson dissented. Sotomayor wrote that Crawford’s rights had been clearly violated, calling it a “structural error” that should have entitled him to a new trial.
In a statement released after the execution, the Office of Capital Post-Conviction Counsel said Crawford “was executed without ever receiving the fair trial we are all guaranteed.” They described him as a model inmate and Christian who sought to help others behind bars, quoting his response when told of his execution date: “I want to do the most good I can do, and make the most positive impact I can make, with what time I have left.” They also extended sympathy to the family of Kristy Ray.
At a press conference following the execution, Mississippi Department of Corrections Chief Superintendent of Operations Mark McClure said the execution “went as well as could be expected” and asked Mississippians to keep Ray’s family in their prayers.
Crawford’s execution was Mississippi’s second in 2025. Nationally, 38 people have been executed so far this year, a sharp increase from the 25 of last year. Mississippi currently has 35 people on death row, 34 men and one woman.
