Alabama execution stays on hold as officials complete court-ordered psychiatric evaluation
The execution of Alabama death row inmate David Lee Roberts has been postponed as the state awaits the results of a court-ordered psychiatric evaluation.
Roberts, 59, was scheduled to be executed by nitrogen gas on August 21. However, a judge issued a stay last month to allow time for a mental competency evaluation. The Alabama Department of Corrections announced Friday that the evaluation report will not be completed in time, effectively halting the execution.
“As a result, the Department anticipates that the execution scheduled for August 21 will not occur on that date. Accordingly, the Department has halted all preparations for Mr. Roberts’ currently scheduled execution,” the agency stated in a press release.
Roberts was convicted of the 1992 killing of Annetra Jones in Marion County. Prosecutors said he shot Jones three times in the head while she slept, then set the house on fire after dousing her body and the floor with a flammable liquid.
Though a jury recommended life without parole by a 7-5 vote, the judge overrode the decision and sentenced Roberts to death — a practice Alabama has since outlawed.
Roberts’ attorneys argue that he suffers from severe mental illness, including paranoid schizophrenia, delusions, and auditory hallucinations. In court filings, they noted he recently attempted to burn tattoos off his limbs, believing they were controlling his thoughts.
So far in 2025, 28 people have been executed in the United States — surpassing last year’s total and matching the number carried out in 2015. At least nine additional executions are scheduled across seven states before the end of the year.
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