INDIANAPOLIS — The Indiana Supreme Court has officially set a date to carry out the states first execution in more than 14 years.
In a 5-0 decision, the court ruled Joseph Corcoran would be executed on Dec. 18, just before sunrise. Corcoran was was convicted by a jury in 1999 for shooting and killing his brother James Corcoran, his sister’s fiancé Robert Scott Turner, and two of their friends: Timothy Bricker and Douglas Stillwell.
Corcoran lost his last appeal in the case in 2016 and has stayed on death row.
The ruling comes just over two months after Indiana Governor Eric Holcomb and Attorney General Todd Rokita filed a request to restart executions in the state.
“After years of effort, the Indiana Department of Correction has acquired a drug — pentobarbital – which can be used to carry out executions. Accordingly, I am fulfilling my duties as governor to follow the law and move forward appropriately in this matter,” Gov. Holcomb said at the time of the request.
There are 10 inmates currently on death row in Indiana, according to a database from the Death Penalty Information Center.
Indiana is one of 21 states where the death penalty is legal, according to the Death Penalty Information Center. The last inmate to be executed in Indiana was Matthew Wrinkles on Dec. 11, 2009.
In the U.S., seven people have been executed in 2024 so far. Last year, there were 24 total executions.
