Alabama is preparing to execute death row inmate Jeffery Lee on Thursday evening, September 17, following a court decision that halted his previously scheduled nitrogen gas execution. Lee, 49, was sentenced to death for the 1998 murders of two people during a pawn shop robbery in rural Dallas County.
The state has now scheduled his execution by lethal injection at the William C. Holman Correctional Facility. Meanwhile, Lee’s attorneys are asking the U.S. Supreme Court to intervene, challenging the state’s decision to change the execution method.
Alabama Sets New Execution Date After Nitrogen Gas Ruling
Jeffery Lee was initially scheduled to be executed by nitrogen hypoxia on June 11, 2026. However, a judge blocked the planned execution, prompting the Alabama attorney general’s office to seek a new date using lethal injection.
The revised execution is scheduled to begin at 6 p.m. Thursday at the Holman Correctional Facility in southern Alabama.
Lee and his supporters have continued efforts to prevent the death sentence from being carried out. His legal team argues that Alabama should not be permitted to switch execution methods after previously agreeing to use nitrogen hypoxia.
The case has also drawn attention because of the original jury recommendation. Lee’s attorneys point to the jury’s decision to recommend life imprisonment rather than the death penalty.
Two People Killed During 1998 Pawn Shop Robbery
The murders occurred on December 12, 1998, at Jimmy’s Pawn Shop in Orrville, a small community west of Selma.
The victims were Jimmy Ellis, the shop’s owner, and Elaine Thompson, an employee. Both were shot and killed during the robbery. Another employee survived by pretending to be dead and later contacting emergency services.
According to testimony presented during Lee’s trial, he entered the pawn shop and asked to see wedding rings. He reportedly told employees he would return after getting money from his grandmother.
Prosecutors said Lee later returned with a sawed-off shotgun and opened fire inside the store. The surviving employee testified that they remained on the floor until Lee left the building.
Ellis was also known for his career as an Elvis impersonator. He performed under the name “Orion” and gained national attention for his musical performances.
Lee was convicted of capital murder and attempted murder in 2000.
Jury Recommended Life Sentence as Lawyers Challenge Execution Method
One of the central issues in Lee’s case is the sentence recommended by the jury.
The jury voted 7-5 in favor of life imprisonment without parole. Despite that recommendation, the trial judge imposed the death penalty.
Alabama abolished judicial override in capital sentencing in 2017. The change prevented judges from replacing jury sentencing recommendations in future capital cases, but it was not applied retroactively to earlier cases such as Lee’s.
Lee is among approximately two dozen Alabama death row inmates whose death sentences were imposed despite jury recommendations for life imprisonment.
Supporters organized a rally outside the Alabama Capitol on Tuesday, calling on officials to honor the original jury decision.
Supreme Court Asked to Review Lethal Injection Switch
Lee’s attorneys have petitioned the U.S. Supreme Court to halt the execution while the justices consider whether Alabama can use lethal injection in his case.
Lee previously challenged Alabama’s lethal injection protocol in a lawsuit filed in 2016. After nitrogen hypoxia became an authorized execution method in the state, he selected nitrogen gas as his preferred method.
In 2018, he agreed to dismiss the lethal injection lawsuit after the state agreed that, if he were executed, the method would be nitrogen hypoxia.
His lawyers now argue that this agreement prevents Alabama from proceeding with lethal injection. They have suggested that the state could instead revise its nitrogen gas procedures or consider another legally permitted execution method.
The Alabama attorney general’s office maintains that the state is legally allowed to change the execution method and has asked the Supreme Court to allow the execution to proceed.
Alabama’s Use of Nitrogen Gas in Executions
Lethal injection remains Alabama’s primary execution method. However, the state began using nitrogen hypoxia in 2024 as an alternative.
Nitrogen hypoxia involves replacing breathable air with nitrogen, causing death through oxygen deprivation. The method has been used in several executions in Alabama and has also been carried out in Louisiana.
Lee’s case comes amid continuing legal disputes over execution procedures, the role of jury recommendations and the rights of death row inmates.
