Daniel Lucas, Georgia

Daniel Lucas, Georgia

April 27, 2016

Daniel Anthony Lucas was executed by the state of Georgia on Wednesday, April 27, 2016. Daniel was pronounced dead at 9:54 pm local time, inside the execution chamber at the Georgia Diagnostic and Classification Prison in Jackson, Georgia. He was 37 years of age. Daniel was executed for the murder of 37-year-old Steven Moss and his two children, 15-year-old Kristin Moss and 11-year-old Bryan Moss on April 23, 1998. He spent the last 18 years of his life on Georgia’s death row.

Daniel had a history of drug and alcohol abuse from a young age. Growing up, his parents drank excessively and used various drugs. They would frequently argue in front of him. Daniel alleges that he received brain damage as a child, which compromises his memory and makes him highly susceptible to suggestions.

On April 23, 1998, Daniel Lucas and Brandon Joseph Rhode burglarized the home of Steven and Gerri Ann Moss twice. During the second burglary, Bryan Moss arrived home from school. Spying the two men in his home from a window, Bryan entered through a back door, armed with a baseball bat. Lucas and Rhode overpowered Bryan, forcing him to sit in a chair, where Lucas shot him unexpectedly, causing non-fatal injuries. Lucas then took Bryan to a bedroom, where he shot him repeatedly.

Kristin Moss arrived home from school a short time later. Rhode forced Kristin into a chair, where he shot her twice, with a different gun than was used to shoot Bryan. A short time, later, the father of the two children, Steven Moss arrived home. He was shot four times by Rhode. Before leaving the home with their stolen goods, Lucas took a third gun and shot the two children again. All three family members died from their gunshot wounds.

Lucas and Rhode were identified by a neighbor who saw them fleeing the scene in Rhode’s red vehicle. Further investigation linked damage done to Rhode’s vehicle with paint and tire impressions left at the house. Lucas confessed to his part in the crime in a videotaped confession. He would later allege that he was extremely drunk during the robbery and did not clearly remember what happened and that he was coerced into confessing.

Both men were convicted and sentenced to death, however during their separate trials, they gave differing accounts of what happened that day, specifically who did the shootings. Rhode was executed on September 27, 2010.

Please pray for peace and healing for the family of Steven, Kristin, and Bryan Moss. Pray for the family of Daniel Lucas.

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