Lisa Montgomery Executed by Federal Government, First Woman in Nearly 70 Years
January 13, 2021 – Lisa Montgomery was executed by lethal injection early Wednesday morning at a federal prison in Terre Haute, Indiana, becoming the first woman put to death by the U.S. federal government in nearly seven decades. Her execution, carried out despite last-minute legal appeals and pleas for clemency, marked the 11th federal execution since the Trump administration resumed federal capital punishment in July 2020 after a 17-year hiatus.
Montgomery, 52, was convicted in 2007 of kidnapping and murdering Bobbie Jo Stinnett, a pregnant woman from Skidmore, Missouri, in December 2004. Prosecutors stated Montgomery strangled Stinnett and then used a kitchen knife to cut the baby from her womb. The infant survived and was later reunited with her father.
Her legal team argued intensely for clemency and a stay of execution, citing severe mental illness resulting from a lifetime of extreme physical and sexual abuse, including claims of suffering brain damage. Lawyers contended she was not able to fully understand the nature of her punishment and that her traumatic background should have been mitigating factors preventing her execution.
Federal courts, including the Supreme Court, ultimately rejected these appeals, clearing the way for her execution after a legal back-and-forth that saw her execution briefly delayed earlier in the week.
Montgomery was pronounced dead at 1:31 a.m. EST. She made no final statement when offered the chance, according to witnesses present.
Her execution ended an almost 67-year gap since the last federal execution of a woman. Bonnie Brown Heady was executed in 1953 for kidnapping and murder in what was known as the Bobby Greenlease case.
The expedited series of federal executions under the Trump administration drew sharp criticism from human rights groups, attorneys, and some political leaders, who argued against the rush to carry out death sentences in the final days of a presidency. With Montgomery’s execution, the number of federal inmates put to death under the administration climbed, leaving only a few more scheduled before President-elect Joe Biden, who has stated opposition to the death penalty, takes office.
As the nation grapples with the complexities of capital punishment, Montgomery’s case will likely remain a significant point of discussion regarding mental health, victimhood, and the application of the death penalty.
