Three States Carry Out Executions in Rare Day of Back-to-Back Death Sentences
Andrew Powell · Nov 6, 2026 · 2 min read
Three inmates were executed in Indiana, Florida, and Alabama on Thursday, marking the second time this year that three Americans have been put to death on the same day.
The executions involved men convicted of separate murders dating back decades, according to Fox News.
The unusual concentration of executions comes as capital punishment faces renewed scrutiny following a botched execution attempt in Tennessee and a major move by California Gov. Gavin Newsom to commute hundreds of death sentences.
Indiana carried out the first execution shortly after midnight, putting 50-year-old Jeffrey Weisheit to death by lethal injection. He was convicted of setting a house fire in 2010 that killed his girlfriend's two children, ages 8 and 5, as their relationship deteriorated.
Weisheit's attorneys had sought additional brain scans, citing his history of head injuries and mental health problems. Republican Gov. Mike Braun rejected the request, along with an appeal to replace the death sentence with life imprisonment.
Braun said the case had received repeated reviews in state and federal courts without the sentence being overturned. Indiana Attorney General Todd Rokita described the execution as long-awaited justice for the two children.
Florida executed 64-year-old Jesse Guardado later Thursday. Guardado had pleaded guilty to fatally stabbing 75-year-old Jackie Malone in her home in 2004 before stealing jewelry and money to support his drug addiction.
Guardado was pronounced dead at 6:13 p.m. at Florida State Prison. The execution brought Florida's annual total to 19, matching the state record set last year.
Florida has accounted for more than half of the 35 executions carried out nationwide this year, including Thursday's deaths, as Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis has continued signing death warrants.
Alabama completed the day's executions by putting 54-year-old Michael Taylor to death for the 1991 murders of Ivan and Lucille Moore. Taylor beat the couple to death with a metal bar during a robbery at their home and was later caught with their Cadillac.
His attorneys had challenged the state's lethal injection method, noting that Taylor had requested execution by nitrogen gas. Opponents also urged Republican Gov. Kay Ivey to spare his life, arguing he was only 19 when he committed the crimes.
Ivey declined to intervene, describing Taylor's actions as "reprehensible." The victims' relatives welcomed the execution but said the 35-year wait had brought years of uncertainty and pain.
The executions occurred as Newsom announced plans to commute California's 548 death sentences to life without parole, highlighting the sharp divide among states over capital punishment.