I'm sorry, but that ain't no choice. In 2004, Dustin Lee Honken was . When the time of death was. But authoritiesneeded five things before they could begin to prove their case: the bodies. hitType: 'event', His father, Jim, a drunken schemer, held powerful sway over his two sons, Jeff and Dustin, Honkens sister, AlyssaNelson, said during her brothers murder trial. During one of their drug runs, Dustin met Angela Johnson, Terrys erstwhile girlfriend, and the two struck up a business relationship that soon evolved into a romantic one. Dustin Honken, who prosecutors said killed key witnesses to stop them from testifying in his drugs case, received a lethal injection at the Federal Correctional Complex in Terre Haute, Indiana.. Never. CNN The US government on Friday executed Dustin Lee Honken, the third federal inmate to receive the death penalty this week after the punishment was revived by the Trump administration. With the central veins you cant see or feel them, so you have to know the anatomy or use an ultrasound, said Dr. Joel Zivot, a lethal injection expert and intensive care doctor at Emory University who did not attend the execution but reviewed the documents later. There was no reason for the government to kill him, in haste or at all.". He had a rare right-left brain combination that made him attractive enough to land a scholarship to North Iowa Area Community College in the early 1990s. He and Lori Duncan were bound and gagged and shot multiple times. In jail, Johnson made friends with Robert Bobby Gene McNeese, a career criminal doing a life sentence who was a prolific snitch. Your subscription makes work like this possible. The prosecution said he had every reason to kill the victims and presented 65 witnesses against him. Born into a life of uncertainty, Honken grew up in Britt, a small town west of Mason City in north central Iowa. [32] In December 2014, federal prosecutors later announced they would not pursue a second death sentence for Johnson. They drove the hostages to a wooded area outside the city and shot them execution-style. Federal court appeals later described their relationship while dismissing claims that there was substantial mitigation in his upbringing: The movant's mother provided a stable, nurturing and loving environment, never abandoned him, did not fail to provide any sort of safe space or comfort to him, never neglected him, never failed to calm him or tell him that things were going to be okay, acted as a loving caretaker and facilitated the movant's attachment to her by making herself available to him. "For years now, the government has made these terrible accusations against me," he said. The Dustin Honken they wanted to kill is long gone. I let down my family, my children most of all. Death-row inmate Dustin Lee Honken, who killed a family of four, including two children and another person, was executed on Friday, July 17, at 4 pm local time, marking the government's third federal execution in a month after 17 years. A second bank robbery would land himin prison, where he would regale his frequently visiting sons with tales of his criminal exploits. The shackles were fitted with a chain so Honken could move normally without the shackles making noise. Dustin Honken, 52, who prosecutors said killed key witnesses to stop them from testifying in his drugs case, received a lethal injection at the Federal Correctional Complex in Terre Haute, Indiana. Saying he knew a lifer who mighttake the rap for her and Honken, McNeese convinced her to tell him details about the crime only a participant would know and to draw him maps to the bodies. [7] Cutkomp recorded Honken talking about his plans to kill witnesses and implicitly referenced killing witnesses in 1993. Dustin Lee Honken (March 22, 1968 - July 17, 2020) and Angela Jane Johnson (born January 17, 1964) are American mass murderers convicted of the 1993 murders of five people in Iowa.. window.googletag.pubads().addEventListener('slotRenderEnded', function(event) { He suspected that Honken had killed Nicholson and was afraid of being wrongfully accused of murder. She described Honken as a meth kingpin, who in 1993, "kidnapped, fatally shot, and buried Lori Duncan, a single, working mother, Duncan's two young daughters 10-year-old Kandi and 6-year-old Amber and Greg Nicholson, a government informant who testified against Honken on federal drug trafficking charges.". [12], In the early 1990s, Honken started selling marijuana and cocaine. The government paid for snacks, drinks and pizza. }); The murders took place in Iowa in July and November 1993. An Iowa drug kingpin was executed in Indiana on Friday, marking the third person to be killed on the death penalty in the United States this week. However, she panicked when she drove by Loris apartment the following day, on July 26. }); Starting just minutes after its scheduled time, Honken recited Jesuit priest Gerard Manley Hopkins' poem, "Heaven-Haven," before saying a Hail Mary, though he tagged on an additional line: "Hail Mary, Mother of God, pray for me.". The day of Lees execution, Mueller and the other witnesses arrived at the prison in the afternoon. Nearly three decades after Honken coldly ended the lives of five people all in an effort to protect himself and his criminal enterprise, he has finally faced justice, Kupec said. Susan Negersmith was a 20 year-old woman from Carmel, New York. [6], Honken, who was proficient in math, science, and writing, earned a scholarship to North Iowa Area Community College in 1991. And there are some potentially larger expenses, like whatever might be included in the 28 pages of records officials admitted to withholding. Here's why it probably isn't coming back. Dustin Lee Honken was born in Britt, Iowa, on March 22, 1968, and suffered from an abusive childhood. [9], Johnson was born in Forest City, Iowa. Purkey, a 68-year-old on death row for rape and murders in 1998, was executed on Thursday, July 16, by lethal injection as the Trump administration carried out its second federal execution. Even as it paid for tents and memory cards and planes and pizza, the agencys largesse did not extend to the families of the condemned, who had to pay for their own travel and accommodations. They recruited two drug dealers Terry DeGeus and Greg Nicholson to sell their meth in northeast Iowa. [7] Johnson told Honken that DeGeus was personally using too much meth which was supposed to be sold, and that they should deal with each other instead. [33] Johnson is currently serving her sentence at FCI Waseca. Powered by WordPress.com VIP. [23], Honken and Johnson were tried separately. A statement from the Department of Justice echoed the Duncans' sentiment that due process had been seen through. The good-hearted Lori allowed a new friend, Greg Nicholson, to move into her home, knowing he had dealt drugs before but believing he was in rehab and willing to give him a chance in 1993. The guards told him theyd come in from out-of-state, he said, and records show the bureau spent roughly $3.1 million on unidentified costs associated with the staff it brought in from more than two dozen prisons across the country. Circuit vacated District Judge Chutkan's injunction in a per curiam decision. The two-night hotel stay cost around $200, and the tab was picked up by the Federal Bureau of Prisons. He once held a pillow over Alyssa's face after she told one of his girlfriends that he had other girlfriends. if(document.querySelector("#adunit")){ Even if I'm in prison for [] 15 years, whatever. After finishing a year of community college chemistry classes with an A-minus, Honken, decided to become both a drug manufacturer and a dealer using what he had learned. The US government on Friday executed Dustin Lee Honken, the third federal inmate to receive the death penalty this week after the punishment was revived by the Trump administration following a 17 . Honken, 52, was sentenced to die in October 2005 after being convicted of numerous offenses, including five counts of murder among them two small children during the course of a continuing. Yet, Marge knew foul play was involved as she never heard from her daughter or grandchildren again. The victims were related to a drug trial against Honken. DeGeus body was found a few miles from the wooded area. The agency refused to answer any questions about the money, procedures or details of what happened. Around seven years later, the police found the Duncan family and Gregs bodies buried in a single hole, which was located in a wooded area outside Mason City in 2000. However, under federal law, he was bound to the jury's verdict. Dustin Honken, 52, who prosecutors said killed key witnesses to stop them from testifying in his drugs case, received a lethal injection at the Federal Correctional Complex in Terre Haute,. In Lewis Lees case, his victims family had requested his sentencebe reduced to life in prison; in Purkeys, his lawyers asserted that dementia and schizophrenia meant he was not competent to be executed. The government announced they would seek death sentences for both Honken and Johnson. Purkey, the night before he was put to death, saw Bill Clinton on television and said that he intended to vote for him in November elections. Later, when the authorities learned Dustin had changed his plea and Greg was missing, they wanted Terry to become an informant. It will bring a sense of closure, but we will continue to live with their loss. Courtney Crowder, the Register's Iowa Columnist, traverses the state's 99 counties telling Iowans' stories. She told the jury how her 31-year-old daughter waved and smiled at her, and she also saw one of her granddaughters, 10-year-old Kandace, AKA Kandi, clad in her prized sundress. } Dustin Honken, a nerd turned drug kingpin, will become the only Iowan since 1963 to have the death sentence an Iowa jury imposed seen through on Friday, July 17, 2020. Dustin Lee Honken was born in Britt, Iowa, on March 22, 1968, and suffered from an abusive childhood. [8], Cutkomp decided to become an informant. [8], The defense did not have Rickert take the stand out of the fear that she might conclude Honken was a sociopath or had narcissistic personality disorder. }); Within a year, Honken and his childhood friend, Tim Cutkomp, had moved to Arizona, built a sophisticated methamphetamine cooking setup and all but perfected a recipe for pure meth, which they sold mainly through two dealers in northeast Iowa: DeGeus, 32, and Greg Nicholson, 34. They discovered him staying at the home of a friend, Lori Duncan, a single mother with two children, Amber, 6, and Kandi, 10. Seconds later, officials announced the time of death. Prisoner Keith Nelson's execution is set to take place on August 28.] As a result, Honken and Johnson were federally charged with all five murders. Michael Conroy/AP [2] Honken and Johnson were in a relationship at the time of the murders, and Johnson, who had a child from a previous marriage, was pregnant by Honken. Once he checked into the Holiday Inn, guards took him to restaurants in a special handicap rental van that cost $543.40. She told them about Honken's and Johnson's search for Nicholson and that she had seen the pistol used in the 1993 murders in Johnson's closet before it was destroyed. He also decided to switch to meth. On October 14, 2004, Honken was convicted of all 17 counts against him, including five counts of murder in furtherance of a continuing criminal enterprise. And I have asked to be, Where no storms come, Where the green swell is in the havens dumb, And out of the swing of the sea," he said. Honken took the adults out of the car, walked them into the woods, and executed them in front of a pre-dug shallow grave. [7], During Honken's capital murder trial, his mitigation expert, Lisa Rickert, wrote to his lawyers that not only had she struggled to find any possible mitigation, what she discovered only further cast Honken in a negative light. I deeply regret the pain I caused to my daughter, who I love so very much. Dustin Honken, an Iowa meth kingpin who kidnapped and killed five people to thwart his prosecution for drug trafficking in . Honken reported in his pre-sentence investigation that his father struck him numerous times during his childhood, although he denied that his father was physically abusive and maintained that the emotional turmoil in his early life mostly stemmed from his father's alcoholism. Iowa-licensed. hitType: 'event', "Honken has not demonstrated a likelihood of success on his claim that the 2019 Protocol is arbitrary and capricious based on its failure to consider the risk of flash pulmonary edema," the court of appeals wrote, citing language used in similar decisions. "It sickens me to know what happened, she said, even more so not to tell anyone.. Not only that, the police found Terry DeGeus body in a field a few miles from the crime scene. Honken was pronounced dead after 30 minutes longer than the other two executions. Honken was tried first, with his trial starting in October 2004. It further cemented the idea that Lori and her children might have planned for a hasty getaway. Lees execution, like Purkeys, went ahead only after the U.S. Supreme Court gave it a green light in a 5-4 decision hours before. document.querySelector("#ads").addEventListener('click',function(){ The death penalty is in flux. He claimed he had nothing to do with the 1993 disappearances. After a two-month-long trial, the jury found him guilty on all 17 counts. Honken, the 35, was later convicted in the . The man they killed today could have spent the rest of his days helping others and further redeeming himself., In a statement, Justice Department spokesperson Kerri Kupec said just punishment has been carried out.. He plotted to murder Cutkomp and gave a fellow inmate directions to Cutkomp's house. Dustin Honken, 52, who prosecutors said killed key witnesses to stop them from testifying in his case, received a lethal injection at the Federal Correctional Complex in Terre Haute, Indiana.. However, the plot was discovered and stopped by guards. We believe that he was ready to take violent actions again. These are the stories that you need to know about capital punishment's past, as well as its uncertain future. While out on bond in his drugs case in July 1993, Honken and his girlfriend Angela Johnson kidnapped Lori Duncan and her two daughters from their Mason City, Iowa, home, then killed and buried them in a wooded area nearby. The 68-year-old, who was reportedly suffering from dementia and Alzheimer's, before his execution, said: "I deeply regret the pain and suffering I caused to Jennifers family. Dustin Lee Honken was formally sentenced to death on October 11, 2005. The agency also fed the guards and some of the other law enforcement agencies that came to help with outside security, racking up a tab of more than $3,990 for snacks and light refreshments.. "I didn't kill anyone and even though that hasn't been proven, the accusations have repeatedly been used against me. He was pronounced dead at 3:36p.m. media-tech companies with hubs around the world. ga('ads.send', { In July 2007, the United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit upheld the conviction, finding sufficient evidence to conclude that Johnson had participated in the murders. (AP) The U.S. government on Friday put to death an Iowa chemistry student-turned-meth kingpin convicted of killing five people, capping a week in which the Trump administration restored federal executions after a 17-year hiatus. [7], Honken was released on bond and searched for Nicholson's whereabouts. For Stubbs and the ACLU, the bureaus lack of forthrightness suggests there are still more costs it hasnt revealed. But his lawyer, Shawn Nolan, countered, saying that Honken had been "redeemed" and that he "recognized and repented for the crimes he had committed. The two ended their relationship shortly after Nicholson's arrest. Dustin Lee Honken (March 22, 1968 July 17, 2020)[1] and Angela Jane Johnson (born January 17, 1964)[2] are American mass murderers convicted of the 1993 murders of five people in Iowa. [7], McNeese got Johnson to confess to the murders by claiming he could find another inmate who could take the blame. Iowa abolished the death penalty in 1965, but federal prosecutors sought to execute Honken for killing government informants and children. Lets find out. More: Timeline of events in the infamous 1993 Iowa murders. Honken spoke on his back, strapped to a gurney under a pale-green sheet. ga('ads.send', { Honken beat, shot, and buried DeGeus. An execution date of January 15, 2020, was set for Honken. The governments approach still stung months later: We feel that they go out of their way to not accommodate us.. Subscribe today at DesMoinesRegister.com/Deal. While Honken's execution is the last one in this weeklong spree, Keith Dwayne Nelson, who kidnapped and raped a 10-year-old girl, is scheduled to be executed Aug. 28. Jim committed two bank robberies before getting caught and sent to federal prison. The SD memory cards to record videos of their activities cost $58.78. A prison official in Terre Haute, Indiana, reportedly told the New York Post: "We will not be providing details of Mr. Lees last meal.". Honken, who was known as "Iowa's Walter White", murdered government informants and two children days before he was set to enter a plea for drug charges in 1993. The executions were scheduled after the Department of Justice announced last year that it would carry out capital punishments again after a 17-year hiatus, sayingthat defendants convicted of the most heinous crimes should be subject to a sentence of death.. Upon learning that Nicholson had disappeared, the government turned to Honken's former dealer, DeGeus. Upon learning that she had been tricked, Johnson attempted to hang herself. In 2005, Tokars stopped an attempted escape by Honken, in which he plotted to escape with the help of white supremacists and murder witnesses. In recent days, prison authorities permitted Honken to make his last calls to family and friends, according to Sister Betty Donoghue, a Catholic nun whom he called Wednesday. hitType: 'event', He faced a minimum of 10 years in prison. Upon hearing the sentence, Honken seemed visibly disappointed. Reach her at ccrowder@dmreg.com or 515-284-8360. Dustin switched to methamphetamine, enlisting the help of his best friend, Tim Cutkomp, and moved to Arizona to set up his drug empire. reporters on a platform technologically tailored to meet the needs of the modern reader. "Finally justice is being done. Keri Blakinger Donations from readers like you are essential to sustaining this work. However, this decision was overturned since the government had never asked McNeese to cooperate in the case against Johnson. The spending records from July and August offer glimpses of not only the cost but the logistics of how the government puts prisoners to death. As the investigation into Honken continued, he killed another drug dealer working with him, Terry DeGeus, beating him with a bat and shooting him. Sep 25, 2004. }); window.googletag.pubads().addEventListener('slotOnload', function(event) { A statement from relatives of Lori, Amber and Kandace Duncan the 31-year-old mother and her 6- and 10-year-old daughters whomHonken also killed lamented that their lives were "taken" while Honken's continued for 27 more years. According to court documents, Angela bought a gun on July 7, 1993, and she and Dustin began hunting Greg down, with him divorcing his ex-wife and moving in with Lori and her children. Families for two of Honken's victims provided public statements, differing in tone and length, but each rife with emotion. He believed he would go to heaven. Honkens lawyer, Shawn Nolan, said his client was redeemed and had repented for his crimes. Inside, 2,600 prisoners in the two-prison complex were locked down. "[31], The presiding judge stated, "I am troubled by the lack of certainty in the record concerning the precise involvement of Angela Johnson in these crimes". Terrys hobbies included playing pool, hanging out with his friends, and spending quality time with his children. Honken has rarely spoken publicly since his sentencing, but until Friday's statement from his lawyer maintainedhis innocence. }); Three death row convicts, Daniel Lewis Lee, Wesley Ira Purkey, and Dustin Honken were put to death last week in a series of first federal executions in 17 years in the United States. He is scheduled to be executed on Friday, July 17. Honken was involved in the manufacturing of methamphetamine, and one of his dealers was set to testify against him, so Honken and Johnson murdered him . ET Friday. At his sentencing in 2005, Honken recognized the victims families had suffered a senseless destruction of human life in losing their loved ones, but also declared that their vengeance toward me is misguided.. [16], On June 2, 1997, Honken pleaded guilty to attempting to distribute meth and conspiring to manufacture and distribute meth. While awaiting trial, Honken was released on bond. ga('ads.send', { Outside the facility, protesters held press conferences, waved signs and live-tweeted every court development. },false) Days before each cluster of executions last summer, the Bureau of Prisons shipped in dozens of extra staff for training in preparation for the event, as it is elliptically referred to in records. Over the years he grew incredibly close to his family, becoming a true father, son, brother and friend. "[8] When Cutkomp asked Honken if killing people bothered him, he replied "Nope.