Norman sues over pentobarbital; Humphries cites Survivor Justice Act

Both inmates had Wednesday execution dates

In August, LeJames Norman and another death row inmate, John Rubio, sued Texas in Travis County, asking a district judge to block the state’s use of pentobarbital in lethal injections. They argued the state’s supply was either expired or created at a compounding facility, and therefore unreliable. The Texas Department of Criminal Justice tested its pentobarbital supply for potency and will extend its use date if the agency determines the drug remains effective, The Texas Tribune reported. Some critics have called this testing method unreliable and unsafe. A Travis County district judge had previously barred the use of pentobarbital before the 2023 execution of Robert Fratta over similar concerns, but that ruling was overturned on appeal and Fratta’s execution went forward.

Norman was scheduled for execution in Texas on Wednesday evening, 21 years after he and co-defendant Ker’sean Olajuwa Ramey killed three people in an Edna, Texas, home. If carried out, his execution would be the fifth in Texas this year; three more are scheduled through year-end. Both Norman and Ramey, who is set for execution on Sept. 23, were scheduled to be executed by lethal injection.

On Monday, Norman’s attorneys filed a U.S. Supreme Court appeal, part of a broader pattern of appellate challenges in his case, alleging that prosecutors misrepresented facts in his case.

The 2005 killings occurred when Norman, then 19, and Ramey broke into the home of their neighbor in Edna, Texas, intending to steal cocaine, according to court records reported by The Texas Tribune. After a fight with the occupants, the two killed Celso Lopez, 38; Tiffani Peacock, 18; and Sam Roberts, 24.

Norman has shown remorse for the killings, USA Today reported. His attorneys have argued that he had a troubled childhood that led him to murders, and that he deserves mercy, USA Today reported. He grew up in and out of homeless shelters and was physically abused by his parents. When Norman was young, a police officer shot and killed his father, which court records say “greatly affected Norman.”

Tabatha Munnerlyn Hastings, Peacock’s sister, told USA Today that “Tiffani was so much more than the tragedy that took her life.” “She was my sister, and she was a light to the people who knew and loved her,” Hastings said. “She was only 18 years old. Her whole life was still ahead of her. She had dreams, hopes, plans, and so much more life left to live.”

After the killings, Norman fled to Mexico but was stopped by U.S. Border Patrol agents when he re-entered the country. He cooperated with police and testified against Ramey. Norman pleaded guilty at his 2008 trial and was sentenced to death. He has since filed several appeals, including one filed Monday with the U.S. Supreme Court alleging that prosecutors misrepresented facts.

In a separate proceeding the same day, Humphries’ execution was scheduled by lethal injection at 7 p.m. EDT at the Georgia Diagnostic and Classification Prison in Jackson, Georgia — about an hour before Norman’s. Cobb County Superior Court Judge Tyler J. Browning stayed the execution after attorneys argued that Humphries qualifies for resentencing under Georgia’s 2025 Survivor Justice Act. Medical evaluations showed that Humphries had received severe physical, emotional and sexual abuse during his childhood.

In 2003, Humphries robbed and killed Lori Brown, 21, and Cyndi Williams, 33, at a model home in an Atlanta suburb. (The UPI text identifies the perpetrator as “Hastings” in this passage, an apparent typographical error; the article elsewhere identifies him as Humphries.)