Oklahoma executes Kendrick Simpson via lethal injection after double murder | World | News
Kendrick Simpson (Image: Police)
A double murderer has been executed via lethal injection, as he claimed he committed his crimes due to “paranoia.” Kendrick Antonio Simpson, 45, was put to death at the Oklahoma State Penitentiary in McAlester on Thursday morning and pronounced dead at 10.19am (4.19pm GMT).
He had been sentenced to death for a 2006 drive-by shooting in Oklahoma City that left two young men dead. Simpson opened fire with an AK-style rifle after a confrontation outside a hip-hop nightclub, killing Glen Palmer, 20, and Anthony Jones, 19. His execution went ahead after the US Supreme Court rejected a last-minute appeal and a clemency request was refused. The New Orleans native had moved to Oklahoma only months earlier after fleeing Hurricane Katrina in 2005. At a clemency hearing he said he had been “compelled by paranoia” and was “ashamed” of the murders.
Kendrick Simpson, 45, picture on August 11 (Image: AP)
He was 25 at the time of the killings, which happened on January 16, 2006.
The victims were still wearing their seatbelts and had no idea they were being followed, prosecutors said.
The confrontation had begun inside Fritzi’s nightclub after a remark about Simpson’s red Chicago Cubs baseball cap.
After being punched to the ground, Simpson left and later spotted the men again at a 7-Eleven.
He told his companions to “follow them” and chased their car for about 3.5 miles.
From the front passenger seat he fired around 20 rounds with an AK-style rifle in a drive-by shooting.
The only survivor was London Johnson, then 19, who was in the back seat.
The Oklahoma State Penitentiary in McAlester (Image: Google)
Simpson blamed his actions on post-traumatic stress disorder from being shot himself five times in a drive by shooting in 2004 in New Orleans and from fleeing the flooded city after the hurricane.
He told the Oklahoma Pardon and Parole Board: “I was young and traumatized, ignorant to what was important in life, and compelled by paranoia.”
During his time on death row, Simpson became a published poet, with his lawyers saying he had committed himself to non-violence.
He had asked the US Supreme Court to halt the execution, but justices rejected his request the day before it was carried out.
The board voted 3-2 against recommending clemency, meaning Governor of Oklahoma Kevin Stitt could not commute his death sentence.
Simpson was pronounced dead at at the Oklahoma State Penitentiary in McAlester on Thursday morning.
Our community members are treated to special offers, promotions, and adverts from us and our partners. You can check out at any time. Read our Privacy Policy
For his last meal he requested a bacon cheeseburger, large onion rings and a strawberry milkshake.
Reporters for The Associated Press, The Oklahoman, The Frontier, a Tulsa TV station and Telemundo Oklahoma witnessed the execution.
It was Oklahoma’s first of 2026 and the third in the United States this year.
There were 47 executions in the United States in 2025, the highest number since 2009.
The rise in executions has come amid falling support for capital punishment across the US. A Gallup poll found more Americans now believe the death penalty is applied unfairly (50%) than fairly (47%).
