South Carolina man convicted of murdering two people gets a June execution date
Share this @internewscast.com

COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) — A South Carolina man, who received two death sentences for killing two people nearly twenty years ago, was slated for execution on June 13.

The state Supreme Court issued the death warrant for Stephen Stanko in connection with the Horry County shooting death of a friend. Stanko is also on death row for murdering a woman he lived with in Georgetown County and assaulting her teenage daughter.

Stanko will be the first person scheduled to be executed in South Carolina since Mikal Mahdi was executed by firing squad on April 11. Mahdi’s lawyers released autopsy results indicating the bullets that killed him barely struck his heart, suggesting he suffered in agonizing pain for three to four times longer than experts claim would occur if his heart had been hit directly.

(South Carolina Department of Corrections via AP)

Stanko will get to decide if he dies by firing squad, lethal injection or the electric chair. The deadline for his decision is May 30.

The crimes

Stanko, 57, is being executed for killing his 74-year-old friend Henry Turner. Stanko went to Turner’s home in April 2006 after lying about his father dying and then shot Turner twice while using a pillow as a silencer, authorities said.

Stanko stole Turner’s truck, cleaned out his bank account and then spent the next few days in Augusta, Georgia, where he told people in town for the Masters golf tournament that he owned several Hooters restaurants. He stayed with a woman who took him to church. She then called police once she saw his photo and that he was wanted for murder, police said.

(AP Photo/Tom Murray, Pool, File)

Hours before killing Turner, Stanko beat and strangled his girlfriend in her home and raped her daughter before slashing the teen’s throat. The daughter survived and testified against him at one of his trials.

Greg Hembree, who prosecuted one of the trials, later became a state senator and was the chief sponsor of the 2021 law that allowed South Carolina to use a firing squad.

His own lawyer called him a ‘psychopath’

Stanko admitted to the killings. His defense said he had problems with the frontal lobe of his brain that left him aggressive, unable to control his impulses and without empathy. They argued that he was either not guilty by reason of insanity or that he at least shouldn’t get the death penalty because of his mental illness.

In his appeals, Stanko said his trial attorney ruined his chance at a fair trial and lost any sympathy with jurors by calling him a “psychopath.”

Firing squad problems

Any final appeals by Stanko in the weeks before his execution will likely include the problems Mahdi’s lawyers raised after his firing squad death.

The only photo of Mahdi taken at his autopsy shows two apparent chest wounds. Officials said all three bullets fired by the three volunteer prison employees hit Mahdi, with two going through the same hole.

During the state’s first firing squad death, the autopsy found that Brad Sigmon’s heart had been destroyed. Just one of the four chambers of Mahdi’s heart was perforated, which likely meant he didn’t die in the 15 seconds experts predicted he would have if the squad’s aim was true, according to his lawyers.

Witnesses said Mahdi, who had a hood over his head, groaned 45 seconds after he was shot.

South Carolina’s busy death chamber

Stanko will be the sixth inmate killed in South Carolina since an unintended 13-year pause on executions ended in September 2024.

The state struggled for years to get the drugs needed for lethal injections until it passed a shield law that allowed the execution procedures, and the names of the drug supplier and execution team members, to remain secret.

(South Carolina Department of Corrections via AP, File)

Three South Carolina inmates have died by lethal injection over the past eight months, while two have chosen the firing squad.

Across the U.S., 16 executions have taken place in 2025, with at least six more scheduled before Stanko is set to die.

Share this @internewscast.com
You May Also Like

Exploring the Future of Streaming Services: A Closer Look at Mubi, Tubi, and Others

Like countless others globally, you probably hold subscriptions to streaming services such…

Kilmar Abrego Garcia Returns to the U.S., Faces Human Smuggling Charges While Lawyers Pledge Continued Legal Battle

The Trump administration describes Kilmar Abrego Garcia as a key figure in…

Los Angeles ICE Raids Result in Arrest of 44, Including Union Leader

After a day of contention and little information about the nature of…

Champaign Farmers Market Makes a Comeback at Its Original Location

The warmer weather signals the start of various summer activities, including the…

Russian Drones and Missiles Strike Kharkiv in Eastern Ukraine, Leaving 3 Dead, Officials Report

KYIV – Ukraine’s eastern city of Kharkiv was the focus of a…

New Bill Suggests Allowing Parade Attendees to Carry Concealed Weapons

SHREVEPORT, La. (KTAL/KMSS) A proposed bill is changing the rules for carrying…

ICE Detains Southern California Dad During Immigration Hearing

Loved ones are rallying together to help a Southern California father who…

Study Reveals Drinking Sugar Could Be More Harmful Than Eating It

PROVO, Utah (KTVX) — Drinking your sugar may be worse for you…

Latest Update: Man Collapses on Delta Flight from Savannah Due to Lack of Air Conditioning

SAVANNAH, Ga. () – A Delta Airlines flight departing from Savannah/Hilton Head…

UFO Whistleblower Applauds Trump’s Drone Task Force Initiative

() The Trump administration’s emphasis on drones is a step in the…

Attorney Claims Returning Abrego Garcia to the US is a ‘Political’ Move

() The attorney of Kilmar Abrego Garcia tells that his client’s return to…

Al-Qaida Leader in Yemen Issues Threats to Trump, Musk, and Others

DUBAI – Al-Qaida’s Yemen branch leader has issued threats to U.S. President…