Tennessee executes 75-year-old – first execution in five years hits Oscar Franklin Smith

On Thursday morning, 75-year-old Oscar Franklin Smith was executed by lethal injection in the US state of Tennessee. It was his fourth execution date – three years ago he was granted a stay of execution one hour before the scheduled execution.

Smith was sentenced to death for allegedly murdering his separated wife and their 13- and 16-year-old sons from a previous relationship in October 1989.

He had threatened to kill his wife a dozen times and finally carried out the threat and also murdered his two stepsons, who were probably trying to protect their mother. The victims had both gunshot and stab wounds and their throats were cut.

In his final words, Smith denounced the governor and the flawed justice system at length, declaring twice at the end, “I didn’t kill them.” He had repeatedly maintained his innocence. There was indeed foreign DNA on one of the murder weapons, but the evidence against him was said to be overwhelming.

It was the first execution in Tennessee in five years, the 19th execution of a death sentence in the USA this year and the third this week.

Sources:
https://www.tennessean.com/story/news/crime/2025/05/22/oscar-franklin-smith-75-dies-first-tennessee-execution-since-2020-lethal-injection/82519855007/
https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2025/05/22/tennessee-executes-oscar-franklin-smith-1989-murder/83777854007/