Sep 18, 2019Robert Sparks is scheduled to be executed at 6 pm CDT, on Wednesday, September 25, 2019, at the Walls Unit of the Huntsville State Penitentiary in Huntsville, Texas. Forty-five-year-old Robert is convicted of murdering 30-year-old Chare Agnew, 9-year-old Harold Sublet, Jr., and 10-year-old Raekwon Agnew, in Dallas, Texas on September 15, 2007.
Sep 16, 2019At least 12 people have died, and over 20 others are missing after a tourist boat capsized on the Godavari River in Andhra Pradesh, India. The boat capsized after hitting a rock. Pray for the families of the deceased and missing. Pray for the missing.
Sep 16, 2019While over 1,000 individuals remain missing after Hurricane Dorian, more rain, flooding, and strong winds threaten the rescue effort. At least 50 people were killed by Hurricane Dorian, with more deaths expected as the clean-up effort continues. Now, Tropical Storm Humberto has disrupted that effort, with more rain, winds and flooding. Pray for the families of the deceased. Pray for the missing and their families. Pray for the safety of the rescue workers.
Sep 16, 2019At least 5 individuals have been killed in south eastern Spain, as a result of flash flooding. The flooding was caused by heavy rainfall. At least three of the deaths were caused by vehicles being swept away. Pray for the families of the deceased. Pray for the safety of rescue workers. Pray for all those affected.
Sep 16, 2019Although the Hong Kong government has fully withdrawn the extradition bill that sparked the start of the protests, the protests have continued among wider calls for total democracy and investigations into allegations of police brutality, among other demands. Protest have also grown increasingly violent, with clashes between the protesters and the police. Injuries have been reported. Pray for Hong Kong. Pray for healing for the injured. Pray for peace.
Sep 16, 2019Just outside the city of Guadalajara, Mexico, the remains of 44 individuals were found buried in dozens of black bags in a well. The area where the bodies were found is well-known for one of the nation’s most violent drug gangs. A local organization has asked for additional help identifying the remains. Pray for those working to identify the remains. Pray for the families.
Sep 16, 2019A boat traveling from Mai Ndombe to Kinshasa, the capital of DR Congo, has sank on the River Congo. At least 34 individuals are feared to have died, while 76 others were rescued from the boat. The cause of the accident is unknown. Pray for the families of the suspected deceased.
Sep 16, 2019One firefighter has died in an explosion after responding to a suspected gas leak in Farmington, Maine. At least 6 other people were injured in the explosion. Pray for the family of the deceased. Pray for healing for the injured.
Updated: Thursday, August 9, 2018 8:59 pm EDT
The state of Tennessee has executed Billy Ray Irick. For more information, click here.
Updated: Thursday, August 9, 2018 4:11 pm EDT
The Supreme Court of the United States has refused to halt the execution of Billy Ray Irick. Billy and his attorneys were arguing that he is mental incompetent, therefore ineligible for execution, and that Tennessee's execution protocol will amount to a torturous death.
Updated: Monday, August 6, 2018 10:40 am EDT
Billy Ray Irick is scheduled to be executed at 7:10 pm CDT on Thursday, August 9, 2018, at the Riverbend Maximum Security Institution in Nashville, Tennessee. Fifty-nine-year-old Billy is convicted of raping and murdering 7-year-old Paula Kay Dyer on April 15, 1985, in Knoxville, Tennessee. Billy has spent the past 31 years on Tennessee’s death row.
Billy Irick was friends with Paula’s mother, Kathy, and step-father, Kenneth, and lived with them for a time, looking after their five young children while they worked. On April 14, 1985, Paula was living with her mother, while Irick and her step-father were staying with Kenneth’s mother. Paula’s mother left Irick to watch the children while she went out to look for work. She was uneasy about leaving the children with Irick since he had been drinking, although he did not seem intoxicated. She called Kenneth, telling him her fears. He agreed to check on Irick and the children.
Around midnight, Irick called Kenneth, asking him to come by, saying he was unable to wake up Paula. When he arrived, Paula was lying on the living room floor with blood between her legs. Kenneth checked to see if Paula had a pulse, which she did, and then took her to the Children’s Hospital. Paula was pronounced dead a short time after arriving, as they were unable to resuscitate her.
An autopsy determined that Paula likely died from asphyxiation or suffocation. She also had some bruising and cuts on her face. Additionally, evidence showed she had been raped.
Irick was arrested the following day after he was discovered hiding under a bridge. After being arrested, Irick confessed to the crime. He was sentenced to death on December 3, 1986.
In 2010, Irick claimed that he was in the middle of a psychotic break when Paula was murdered and has no memory of his actions from that day. Irick also claims that he was set up by Paula’s step-father, Kenneth, whom, Irick alleges, was the one that murdered Paula.
At the age of six, a clinical psychologist determined that Billy Irick was “suffering from a severe neurotic anxiety reaction with a possibility of mild organic brain damage.” The following year, Billy was hospitalized and treated with anti-psychotic medication for the next 10 months. Following treatment, Billy was discharged to a Church of God home where he remained until he was a teenager. At the age of 13, Billy visited his family, which resulted in him destroying the television with an axe and cutting up his sister’s pajamas with a razor while she slept in them. After returning to the home, Billy snuck into the girl’s dormitory. Billy was expelled and sent back to the hospital, where it was discovered that he had been taken off of his psychotropic drugs. He remained at the hospital until he was 14, at which time he was released to his parents. Billy joined the Army at 17, but was quickly discharged. Billy’s mother also suffered from a psychiatric disorder.
According to interviews conducted by Billy’s attorneys, in the weeks leading up to Paula’s murder, Billy exhibited strange behavior, such as chasing a young girl down the street with a machete because he “didn’t like her looks.” Billy also claims that he was hearing and talking back to voices inside of his head. Billy claims that if this information had been presented at his trial, it could have changed the outcome.
Billy has asked the Tennessee Supreme Court to halt his execution, as he is part of a lawsuit with 32 other death row inmates, who are all arguing that the drugs Tennessee plans to use in lethal injections will amount to torturing them to death. Additionally, Tennessee Governor Bill Haslam is currently evaluating the claims of Billy's diminished mental status as he considers whether Billy should be granted clemency.
This is not Billy’s first execution date. Billy was previously scheduled to be executed in October 2014, however his execution was stayed due to ongoing legal challenges to Tennessee’s lethal injection protocol.
Please pray for peace for the family of Paula. Please pray for strength for the family of Billy. Please pray that if Billy is innocent, lacks the competency to be executed, or should not be executed for any other reason, that evidence will be presented prior to his execution. Please pray that Billy may come to have a peace through a personal relationship with Jesus Christ, if he has not already found one.
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