The last federal inmate facing execution before President Donald Trump leaves office was sentenced to death for the killings of three women in a Maryland wildlife refuge. Resides in Washington, DC. On the evening of January 26, 1996, Higgs, Willis Haynes, and Victor Gloria picked up Tanji Jackson, Tamika Black, and Mischann Chinn in Washington, D.C., and drove them to Higgs’s apartment in Laurel, Maryland, to drink al cohol, listen to music, an d smoke marijuana. Select this result to view Victor Gloria's phone number, address, and more. But after Higgs and Jackson got into an argument, the women reportedly left. Shawn Nolan, one of Higgs’ attorneys, sees a clear political agenda in the unprecedented string of federal executions at the end of Trump’s presidency. Higgs' journey to death row began in January 1996, when he, Haynes, and another friend Victor Gloria, drove from Washington, DC to Maryland to pick up the women. The night before, Higgs and two of his friends, Willis Haynes and Victor Gloria, partied with the women at Higgs’s Maryland apartment. Higgs maintained his innocence while on death row for kidnapping and murdering three women - 19-year-old Tamika Black, 21-year-old Tanji Jackson, and 23-year-old Mishann Chinn - in Maryland. Haynes persuaded them to get into the vehicle. In But Hayes – who confessed and was jailed for life – has denied he was threatened into pulling the trigger and called the idea “b*****t” in a 2012 clemency petition for Higgs. The appeals court concluded that rational jurors could find that Higgs had the dominant role in the murders even though Haynes indisputably was the triggerman. Browse Locations. The key government witness, Victor Gloria, testified that the slayings were set in motion during a late-night gathering at Higgs's Laurel apartment. There, he ordered the women out of the vehicle and gave a gun to Haynes. COLLEGE PARK, Md. Higgs' journey to death row began in January 1996, when he, Haynes, and another friend Victor Gloria, drove from Washington, DC to Maryland to pick up the women. Higgs … These offenses including three counts of first-degree premeditated murder, three counts of first-degree felony murder, and three counts of kidnapping resulting in death. Higgs' attorneys have argued Haynes was the sole shooter in the case and that Higgs himself did not kill anyone. CONVICTED murderer Dustin Higgs was executed on Saturday morning - making him the 13th and final federal death row inmate die under the Trump presidency. Higgs is scheduled to be executed five days before President-elect Joe Biden’s inauguration. -- The last federal inmate facing execution before President Donald Trump leaves office was sentenced to death for the killings of three women in a Maryland wildlife refuge, a crime that led to a life sentence for the man who fired the fatal shots. For other inquiries, Contact Us. A different jury convicted Higgs and returned a death sentence after a separate trial. Haynes, Higgs, Gloria and the … The executed man offered to take the women back to Washington DC, but instead, brought them to a secluded area in the Patuxent National Wildlife Refuge. “Aware at that point that something was amiss, one of the women asked if they were going to have to ‘walk from here’ and Higgs responded 'something like that,'” said an appeals court ruling upholding Higgs’s death sentence. Circuit Court of Appeals. On a website created for him by his supporters, Higgs argued Haynes pulled the trigger that killed Chinn, Jackson, and Black and that Higgs would never have ordered such a thing to begin with. Higgs was 23 on the evening of Jan. 26, 1996, when he, Haynes and a third man, Victor Gloria, picked up the three women in Washington, D.C., and drove them to Higgs’ apartment in Laurel, Maryland, to drink alcohol and listen to music. In their clemency petition, Higgs’ lawyers said Gloria received a “substantial deal” in exchange for his cooperation, “Moreover,” they wrote, “significant questions remain as to whether Mr. Gloria received the additional undisclosed benefit of having an unrelated state murder investigation against him dropped at the urging of federal officers to protect his credibility as the star witness. 23; and Tanji Jackson, 21. All Filters. "The Sun", "Sun", "Sun Online" are registered trademarks or trade names of News Group Newspapers Limited. Jackson, Black, and Chinn then walked out. Higgs was 23 on the evening of Jan. 26, 1996, when he, Haynes and a third man, Victor Gloria, picked up the three women in Washington, D.C., and … Before dawn, an argument between Higgs and Jackson prompted her to grab a knife in the kitchen before Haynes persuaded her to drop it. The Sun website is regulated by the Independent Press Standards Organisation (IPSO), Our journalists strive for accuracy but on occasion we make mistakes. Gloria Smith in Maryland 360 people named Gloria Smith found in Washington-Baltimore, Dover and 2 other cities. President Donald Trump's Justice Department resumed federal executions last year following a 17-year hiatus. Higgs was 23 on the evening of 26 January 1996 when he, Haynes and a third man, Victor Gloria, picked up the three women in Washington DC and drove them to Higgs’s apartment in Laurel, Maryland, … Gloria pled guilty to being an accessory after the fact to the murders and was sentenced to seven years in prison. Higgs was 23 on the evening of Jan. 26, 1996, when he, Haynes and a third man, Victor Gloria, picked up the three women in Washington, D.C., and drove them to Higgs’ apartment in Laurel, Maryland, to drink alcohol and listen to music. Gloria Jones in Maryland 266 people named Gloria Jones found in Washington-Baltimore, Dover and 2 other cities. President-elect Joe Biden - an opponent of the federal death penalty - is expected to ban federal executions when he takes office next week. Murders On the evening of January 26, 1996, Higgs, Willis Haynes and Victor Gloria drove from Higgs' apartment in Laurel, The second best result is Victor Gloria age 40s in Glen Burnie, MD in the Glen Burnie neighborhood. Before dawn the next morning, an argument between Higgs and Jackson prompted her to grab a knife in the kitchen before Haynes persuaded her to drop it. Turn on desktop notifications for breaking stories about interest? Gloria J Jones, 85. Click a location below to find Gloria more easily. 1. He didn’t kill anybody.”. Chinn worked with the children’s choir at a church, Jackson worked in the office at a high school and Black was a teacher’s aide at National Presbyterian School in Washington, according to the Washington Post. A jury in the US District Court for the District of Maryland, on October 11, 2000, found Higgs guilty of multiple federal offenses, including three counts of first-degree premeditated murder, three counts of first-degree felony murder, and three counts of kidnapping resulting in death. Defense attorneys won temporary stays of execution this week for Higgs and another inmate, Corey Johnson, after arguing that their recent COVID-19 infections put them at greater risk of unnecessary suffering during the lethal injections. Gloria said Jackson made threats as she left the apartment with the other women and appeared to write down the license plate number of Higgs’ van, angering him. Cumberland (MD) (2) Dover (MD) (13) Philadelphia-Wilmington-Atlantic City (MD) (7) Washington-Baltimore (MD) (329) Refine Your Search Results. His death sentence was the first imposed in the modern era of the federal system in Maryland, which abolished the death penalty in 2013. 1. On the evening of Friday, January 26, 1996, Dustin Higgs, Willis Haynes and Victor Gloria drove from Higgs's apartment in Laurel, Maryland to Washington, D.C., to pick up Tamika Black, Tanji Jackson and Mishann Chinn. The jurors who convicted Haynes failed to reach a unanimous verdict on whether to impose a death sentence. "Dustin didn’t threaten me. Higgs journey to death row began in January 1996, when him, Haynes and another friend Victor Gloria, drove from Washington, DC to Maryland to … I was not scared of him. Investigators found Jackson’s day planner at the scene of the killings. It contained Higgs’s nickname, “Bones,” his telephone number, his address number and the tag number for his van. I don’t know how I’m going to deal with it.”, 24/7 coverage of breaking news and live events. They argued their contraction of the virus put them at a greater risk of unnecessary suffering during lethal injections. Cumberland (MD) (2) Dover (MD) (12) Philadelphia-Wilmington-Atlantic City (MD) (5) Washington-Baltimore (MD) (251) Refine Your Search Results. But higher courts overruled those decisions, allowing the executions to go forward, and Johnson was executed Thursday night. “I wonder if it's that I'm not yelling loud enough, or is it that the blatant miscarriage of justice of me being killed for a crime I'm certainly innocent of really doesn't matter,” he wrote on the site. Nolan said: "The government completed its unprecedented slaughter of 13 human beings tonight by killing Dustin Higgs, a black man who never killed anyone, on Martin Luther King's birthday. Haynes was tried separately and was not sentenced to death. “It’s not going to ever be right in my mind,” Gaston said, “That was my daughter. The prosecution alleged Higgs threatened Haynes and warned him he’d “better make sure they’re dead” as he handed over the gun. Back at Higgs’s apartment, he and Jackson began ar-guing in the early morning hours. Higgs had invited to his apartment in Laurel, Maryland and once inside, made advances towards Jackson, which she rejected, and the girls ultimately all left together. Dates had been arranged for each of the men and women and the groups had agreed to meet and hang out together. Higgs was 23 on the evening of Jan. 26, 1996, when he, Haynes and a third man, Victor Gloria, picked up the three women in Washington, D.C., and drove them to Higgs’ apartment in Laurel, Maryland, to drink alcohol and listen to music. To inquire about a licence to reproduce material, visit our Syndication site. Victor Gloria, who told Jones how an argument during the early hours of Jan. 27, 1996, turned into a triple homicide, pleaded guilty as an accessory after the fact in exchange for his testimony. Higgs has argued that his death sentence must be thrown out because jurors failed to consider it as a “mitigating factor” that Haynes was convicted of identical charges but sentenced to life in prison. Others have been protesting his execution and the executions of others by those who believe all life is precious. News Corp is a network of leading companies in the worlds of diversified media, news, education, and information services. A different jury convicted Higgs and returned a death sentence after a separate trial. He was the final prisoner scheduled to die in the recent executions ordered by Donald Trump, following Lisa Montgomery and Corey Johnson this week. Dustin didn’t make me do anything that night or ever.". A spokesman for Biden has said the Democrat is against the death penalty and will work to end its use. “In the midst of the pandemic and everything that’s going on right now in the country, it seems just insane to move forward with these executions," Nolan said recently. The 48-year-old was given the lethal injection and pronounced dead at 1:23am local time at the federal penitentiary in Terre Haute, Indiana. Defense attorneys won temporary stays of execution this week for Higgs and another inmate, Corey Johnson, after they became infected with Covid-19. They have also lived in Laurel, MD Victor is related to Vincent Gloria and Deasia Gloria. PeopleFinders is the best people search for contact info, background checks, and arrest records. Dustin Higgs, 48, who is scheduled to be executed on Friday at the federal prison in Terre Haute, Indiana, says nobody alleges he pulled the trigger. His claims were backed up by the 2012 affidavit written by Haynes, including in a clemency application for Higgs during the Obama Administration. Find Gloria Victor in Maryland - phone, address, email, public records. A federal death verdict should not rest on such a flimsy basis.”. Gloria Thomas Smith, 72. In October 2000, a federal jury in Maryland convicted Higgs of first-degree murder and kidnapping in the killings of Tamika Black, 19; Mishann Chinn. Victor Gloria drove from Laurel, Maryland to Washington, D.C. to pick up Tanji Jackson, Tamika Black, and Mishann Chinn. This service is provided on News Group Newspapers' Limited's Standard Terms and Conditions in accordance with our Privacy & Cookie Policy. Before dawn, an argument between Higgs and Jackson prompted her to grab a knife in the kitchen before Haynes persuaded her to drop it. “Gloria turned to ask Higgs what he was doing, but saw Higgs holding the steering wheel and watching the shootings from the rearview mirror,” said the 2013 ruling by a three-judge panel of the 4th U.S. 679215 Registered office: 1 London Bridge Street, London, SE1 9GF. “He received a fair trial and was convicted and sentenced to death by a unanimous jury for a despicable crime,” U.S. District Judge Peter Messitte wrote in a Dec. 29 ruling. Higgs would be the 13th and final federal inmate executed since July, when Trump ended a 17-year hiatus on the federal death penalty. The trio – who all worked with children – had spent the evening at Higgs’ apartment in Laurel, Maryland, after meeting him and two other men, Willis Haynes and Victor Gloria, on a night out. His lawyers have argued it is “arbitrary and inequitable” to execute Higgs while Willis Haynes, the man who fatally shot the women in 1996, was spared a death sentence. The jurors who convicted Haynes failed to reach a unanimous verdict on whether to impose a death sentence. Resides in Baltimore, MD. Higgs' convictions were affirmed on appeal. More than 20 years ago, a Maryland jury found him guilty of 15 counts for the first-degree murder and kidnapping of Tamika Black, Mishann Chinn, … On October 11, 2000, a jury in the U.S. District Court of Maryland found Higgs guilty of numerous federal offenses. His denial of innocence centered around the fact that another man, Willis Haynes, actually pulled the trigger. The three men chased after the women in Higgs' van. All Filters. Browse Locations . Catch up on the developing stories making headlines. To see all content on The Sun, please use the Site Map. Higgs had invited to his apartment in Laurel, Maryland and once inside, made advances towards Jackson, which she rejected, and the girls ultimately all left together. Davina McCall forced to step down as host of Changing Rooms reboot, Thugs wreck police station & torch cop car in 'disgusting' protest rampage, EU export ban could delay UK's Covid vaccine mission by 2 MONTHS, report warns, Ant & fiancee Anne-Marie smile in new Porsche after Saturday Night Takeaway, Covid deaths fall to lowest level in 5 months with 33 more fatalities, ©News Group Newspapers Limited in England No. "Mr. Higgs’s difficult upbringing was not meaningfully presented to the jury at trial," his attorneys wrote. Instead of taking them home, Higgs drove them to a secluded spot in the Patuxent National Wildlife Refuge, federal land in Laurel. On the day in 2001 when the judge formally sentenced Higgs to death, Black's mother, Joyce Gaston, said it brought her little solace, the Post reported. "There was no reason to kill him, particularly during the pandemic and when he, himself, was sick with Covid that he contracted because of these irresponsible, super-spreader executions.". View our online Press Pack. Higgs had a traumatic childhood and lost his mother to cancer when he was 10, the petition says. Higgs' Dec. 19 petition for clemency says he has been a model prisoner and dedicated father to a son born shortly after his arrest. Higgs was 23 on the evening of Jan. 26, 1996, when he, Haynes and a third man, Victor Gloria, picked up the three women in Washington, D.C., and drove them to Higgs’ apartment in Laurel, Maryland, to drink alcohol and listen to music. Higgs' journey to death row began in January 1996, when he, Haynes, and another friend Victor Gloria, drove from Washington, DC to Maryland to pick up the women. But higher courts overruled those decisions, allowing the executions to go forward, and Johnson was executed Thursday night. The federal judge who presided over Higgs' trial two decades ago says he “merits little compassion.”. In a statement after the execution, Higgs' attorney, Shawn Nolan, said his client had spent "decades on death row helping other inmates and working tirelessly to fight his unjust convictions.". Gloria pleaded guilty to being an accessory after the fact to the murders and was sentenced to seven years in prison. Click a location below to find Gloria more easily. For further details of our complaints policy and to make a complaint please click this link: thesun.co.uk/editorial-complaints/, Comments are subject to our community guidelines, which can be viewed, Dustin Higgs insist he is innocent of murdering three women, Higgs said he wasn't the person who pulled the trigger, People have been protesting Higgs' execution, Higgs was on Federal Death Row in Terre Haute, Indiana, Higgs was executed for the murder of three women, He allegedly provided a gun to an accomplice to kill the three women, Lisa Montgomery, the only female inmate on federal death row has been executed for murder in Indiana, Independent Press Standards Organisation (IPSO). No president in more than 120 years had overseen as many federal executions. Higgs handed his pistol to Haynes, who shot all three women outside the van before the men left, Gloria testified. Higgs was 23 on the evening of Jan. 26, 1996, when he, Haynes and a third man, Victor Gloria, picked up the three women in Washington, D.C., and drove them to Higgs’ apartment in Laurel, Maryland, to drink alcohol and listen to music. “And particularly for Dustin, who didn’t shoot anybody.