Overnight: 1st Execution of 2026, and He Had A Lot of Last Words
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What is the main topic discussed in this episode?
This is an iHeart Podcast. Guaranteed human. Hey there, folks. It is Thursday, January 29th, and the first execution of 2026 was carried out last night in Texas. And the death row inmate had a lot to say before he was put to death. And with that, welcome to this episode of Amy and TJ Robes. I should qualify that. A lot to say, relatively speaking. He said more than we are used to a lot of death row inmates saying right before they're put to death.
Yeah, it might be surprising to many, but at least in the executions we've been covering over this past year, most inmates choose to say nothing before they die. At all. They just say, like, nope, no thanks, hard pass. So when someone speaks, it's usually of note, and it's usually one sentence. This was a lot more than that.
Yeah, of note, last night's execution robes was of note for a number of reasons.
What happened during the first execution of 2026 in Texas?
First of all, it was the first in the United States that we have had in 2026 after a year last year in which we saw an increase, a sharp increase in the executions in the country. It's also notable robes, we say to folks. First execution of 2026, I guess you would have the usual suspects of what state it was. This one gets back to, I guess, the first one that's top of mind, even though last year Florida led the way.
Yes, we're talking about Texas. And the first execution of 2026, yes, was in Texas, and it was Charles Victor Thompson. He was executed last night in Huntsville, Texas. It took him 22 minutes, I believe, from when they began, but he was pronounced dead at 6.50 p.m. Central Time. And as we have alluded to, it was not uneventful.
It was not. These are all ways. And again, a few witnesses in there having to do with who are connected to the case, families and whatnot. But also you have some journalists that are usually picked to be in there as well. And we are getting some of that commentary from them. Charles Victor Thompson, 55 years old, been on death row.
Why did Charles Victor Thompson's final words stand out?
Robes, another one of these cases, about 30 years that this family has been waiting for justice but convicted of a double murder back in 1999 killed a woman who was his ex-girlfriend, 39-year-old Denise Hayslip, and her new boyfriend, Darren Kane, who was 30 years old. Now, Robes, last night it was – this is – This was well attended, would you not say? Relatively speaking, again.
No, but again, from a perspective standpoint, a lot of times, especially because you have 20, 30, sometimes even 40 years between when the murders happened and when the executions actually take place, because that's how we roll apparently here in the United States, a lot of times anyone who would have wanted to attend had passed or had moved on or it was just too painful to revisit. So yes, this was a full house, so to speak, because you had... In attendance for Thompson, who was being executed, his father, they put him in a separate room, and that's understandable. Also for Denise Hayslip, her son was there, who was 13 at the time of her murder and has been very outspoken throughout this case.
Her brother and her brother's wife, and then in attendance for Kane, his parents were both there and his ex-wife. So that is a very full house when it comes to executions.
Fairly young man. Cain was only 30 years old. And what, the death row inmate Thompson was 25, 26?
27, I believe, just because I watched an interview he gave over the fall where he was kind of blaming his 27-year-old, kind of like acting as if he was a teenager, that he had an immature mind and had anger issues. And so he was kind of saying, I was just 27, old enough to know better.
So, as it were, and as it went last night, Robes, I also saw and read about this one that, different from others, there was a casualness to him. It seemed like he was interacting with his spiritual advisor, other people in the room, and that was, I guess, almost a... a moment of, it seems weird to say, we've been to a lot of events. It was almost like the pre-events, like it was almost a, I don't know, like a cocktail hour or something. Everybody was lounging around and hanging out before the main event.
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Chapters
6 chapters
1
What is the main topic discussed in this episode?
0:00–1:10
2
What happened during the first execution of 2026 in Texas?
1:10–2:15
3
Why did Charles Victor Thompson's final words stand out?
2:15–5:38
4
What was the significance of Thompson's execution after 30 years on death row?
5:38–9:47
5
Who were the victims in the case against Charles Victor Thompson?
9:47–15:53
6
What unusual interactions occurred during Thompson's execution?
15:53–19:58
Speakers
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