Because of legal delays, they ended up spending more than 12 hours there. Honken, who had the look of a classic 1980s nerd and the smarts to back up the appearance, was talented in math and science, but was an eloquent writer, too. After the two previous executions were repeatedly delayed amid back-and-forth legal maneuvering, Honkens began almost on the minute it had been scheduled for weeks. The prosecution said he had every reason to kill the victims and presented 65 witnesses against him. Circuit vacated District Judge Chutkan's injunction in a per curiam decision. [10][11] Johnson was raised by extremely religious grandparents who would hold her down, wave Bibles over her head, and speak in tongues in an attempt to exorcise demons from her. By 1992, their multi-state ring was netting hundreds of thousands of dollars. Honken's execution was the last one in this weeklong spree. She was formally sentenced to death on December 19, 2005. Honken had physically and verbally abused his sister, Alyssa. Iowa killer Dustin Lee Honken faces execution | The Gazette "Finally justice is being done. [23], Honken and Johnson were tried separately. Never think about it. That stint was short-lived, however, as he was picked up on new drug charges when his garage was raided in 1996. 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. However, he and Tim were arrested on federal drug trafficking charges in March 1993. 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. Dustin Lee Honken was born in Britt, Iowa, on March 22, 1968, and suffered from an abusive childhood. Can we count on your support today? Nonprofit journalism about criminal justice, A nonprofit news organization covering the U.S. criminal justice system. }); Iowa abolished the death penalty in 1965, but federal. I realize I am here because of my own actions. Investigators were sure Honken was involved with the earlier missing people;the coincidences were too great, but they were no closer to finding the bodies. "[17][18], U.S. District Judge Mark W. Bennett imposed sentencing enhancements on Honken for attempting to obstruct justice and having a major role in the conspiracy, and granted a deduction for Honken accepting responsibility. gads_event = event; Dustin Honken, convicted of killing five people, will be executed July 17, 2020. [7] During Johnson's trial, it was revealed that she had been molested as a child. When Cutkomp expressed concern over the murders, Honken said Cobeen forced his hand: "They made me choose between my family and them. However, Cobeen became a police informant. [36], On December 5, 2019, the Supreme Court denied a stay of Chutkan's injunction, while the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit reviewed Chutkan's decision. [7], Honken enlisted his best friend, Tim Cutkomp, moved to Arizona, and borrowed $5,000 from his brother to buy chemicals and equipment. The two used a blowtorch to cut and melt the gun into multiple pieces, which they discarded in ditches along a country road. However, the plot was discovered and stopped by guards. 2d 663", "Judge removes Iowa woman from death row", "Dustin Lee Honken - Federal Execution - July 17, 2020", "Judge temporarily stops execution of north Iowa mass murderer Dustin Honken", "Supreme Court keeps federal executions, including that of Iowa murderer Dustin Lee Honken, on hold", "Administration seeks resumption of federal executions", "Federal Executions Can Restart After Supreme Court Declines a Case", "Higher courts rebuff late legal efforts, Iowan Dustin Honken put to death", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=1993_Iowa_murders&oldid=1152124538. 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. Federal Government Executes 1st Prisoner In 17 Years After Overnight Court Rulings, Federal Government Executes 2nd Man After Supreme Court Denies Appeals. [24] Tokars testified that Honken described strangling Lori Duncan and Greg Nicholson, and killed the children since "they could have been witnesses." Seconds later, officials announced the time of death. "[20], Bennett resentenced Honken to 27 years in prison, saying the minimum sentence was sufficiently harsh. And there are some potentially larger expenses, like whatever might be included in the 28 pages of records officials admitted to withholding. Over the years he grew incredibly close to his family, becoming a true father, son, brother and friend. Dustin Honken, 52, was sentenced to death for killing government informants and children in his effort to thwart his drug trafficking prosecution in 1993. In 1984, Honken plotted a bank robbery in which the person he would convince to commit the robbery for him would then be killed and thrown into a pond. pg.acq.push(function() { Iowa meth kingpin is 3rd executed by US government this week - WUSA Iowa chemistry student-turned-meth kingpin is 3rd federal inmate It was announced on Thursday that Iowa drug kingpin Dustin Lee Honken, who killed five people in the early 90s, has been scheduled to be executed 15 years after receiving his [] [5] Cutkomp wore a wire while he was around Honken during their time on pretrial release. Honken was considered so dangerous that the judge took the rare step of impaneling an anonymous jury. 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. The two started a romantic relationship and Johnson soon became pregnant with Honken's child. PDF 100 moments - Iowa Department of Public Safety Twitter [40] On June 29, 2020, the Supreme Court denied Honken's petition for review, with Justices Ruth Bader Ginsburg and Sonia Sotomayor dissenting.[40]. [13], Honken, seeking to expand his drug dealing business, studied chemistry textbooks at the library, read science journals, kept extremely thorough records, made plans to expand his business to the Internet, and considered writing his own book about how to make and sell meth in the United States. In 1986, Honken schemed to kill one of his accomplices after stealing a car. There was no reason for the government to kill him, in haste or at all.". We believe the defendant was involved in this. 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. Dustin Honken third person executed by federal government this week }); 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. No state would commit the resources I did to the defense of a death I will be in touch shortly. He faced a minimum of 10 years in prison. Alyssa was unable to breathe and was scared that her brother would kill her, but he stopped, apologized, and started crying when he realized what he had done. } (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. [25][26], Ron McIntosh said Honken told him he killed the children since they "wouldn't be quiet, or wouldn't shut up." On October 27, 2004, jurors recommended life sentences for Honken for killing the adult victims and death sentences for killing the children. Between 1986 and 1989, Honken was involved in a conversation which mentioned the possibility of killing his brother's business partner to collect a million dollar life insurance policy. document.querySelector("#google_image_div").addEventListener('click',function(){ When Scott Mueller drove to Indiana in July to see Daniel Lewis Lee die, he stayed at a Holiday Inn. Two others were also put to death during the week after a hiatus of nearly 20 years, including Wesley Purkey. Their attraction was mutual, and she would shortly dump her current boyfriend, Honkens dealer,DeGeus, for the boss. ga('ads.send', { He was at peace. Donations from readers like you are essential to sustaining this work. The governments approach still stung months later: We feel that they go out of their way to not accommodate us.. The man they killed today was a human being, who could have spent the rest of his days helping others and further redeeming himself. Twitter But as Honken'soperation grew, so too did his dependence on meth and his singular focus on success no matter the cost. A coroner pronounced him dead by lethal injection at 4:36 p.m. Upon learning that Nicholson had disappeared, the government turned to Honken's former dealer, DeGeus. Lee was injected with a lethal dose of pentobarbital at 8:07 AM, just hours after the Supreme Court gave a go-ahead to the Trump administration. I'm sorry, but that ain't no choice. He suspected that Honken had killed Nicholson and was afraid of being wrongfully accused of murder. While studying legal documents, Dustin learned Greg had become an informant after being caught with almost 150 grams of pure meth inside his apartment. During the summer of 2020, Dustin Honken Here's why it probably isn't coming back. Inside, 2,600 prisoners in the two-prison complex were locked down. Timeline of events in the Dustin Honken case, infamous Iowa killer 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. 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. "Nearly three decades after Honken coldly ended the lives of five people, including two young girls, all in an effort to protect himself and his criminal enterprise, he has finally faced justice," Kupec said in a statement. Iowa outlawed the death penalty 55 years ago. The hotel was nice enough, and only a 10-minute drive from the federal execution chamber in Terre Haute where the man who killed Muellers father would take his last breath. He said Honken was "a young man infatuated with drug manufacturing, basically a nerd.[7]. 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. He then came back for the children and shot them, too. Honken was sentenced to death and executed by the federal government on July 17, 2020,[4] the first defendant from Iowa to be executed since 1963. Upon hearing the sentence, Honken seemed visibly disappointed. Daniel Lewis Lee, a white supremacist who killed a three-person family that includedan 8-year-old girl, and Wesley Ira Purkey, who raped, murdered, dismembered and dumped the body of a 16-year-old girl in a septic pond, were put to death Tuesday and Thursday, respectively. The single mother was a Navy veteran, an Elvis Presley fan, and tended to find the good in people. The crime Honken was executed for started as a missing-persons case tangentially connected to a federal drug trafficking charge. 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. eventAction: 'load' window.googletag.pubads().addEventListener('slotOnload', function(event) { Honken is set to die by a lethal. The Bureau of Prisons said Dustin Honken, 52, was pronounced dead at 4:36 p.m. Iowa Drug Kingpin Who Killed 5 Is Executed - VOA In addition, they discovered a note addressed to the neighbor, stating, Phyllis, we had to leave on short notice. Execution for Iowa mass killer Dustin Honken on hold Meth didnt enter the picture until 1991, after he had completed a year of community college chemistry, earning an A- average. Some were shut in their cells and others were forced to spend the night in the gym, where they couldnt see the witnesses or the condemned man entering the death chamber. Although details of his last meal were not revealed, Honken, in his last words, recited a poem by an English poet Gerard Manley Hopkins, SJ called Heaven-Heaven. On another occasion, Honken tried to drown Alyssa in a hotel pool. The murders took place in Iowa in July and November 1993. hitType: 'event', Love, Lori.. [8], In the winter of 1993 or 1994, Honken went to Cutkomp and said he needed to destroy a pistol. Just before his death, Lee reportedly implored to the media at his execution to ask the judge about DNA evidence that was left out of his trial. Brown said that in order to visit her son and witness his execution, she took out a loan. This timehis co-conspirator, Cutkomp,turned states witness, collecting Honkens musings about destroying evidence, buying a gun and eliminating investigators and others who he thought would testify against him. A Catholic priest, Honkens spiritual adviser, stood near him inside the death chamber. A closer look Dustin Honken : r/Jodi_Huisentruit_Case - Reddit Mueller uses a wheelchair, which he said can complicate the logistics of plane travel, so he decided to drive to Indiana from his home in Arkansas. Dustin Honken Executed: Third Federal Government Execution This Week pg.acq.push(function() { window.googletag.cmd.push(function() { The execution of Dustin Lee Honken proceeded without any last-minute delays, unlike those of the two other federal inmates who had been put to death in previous days. Department of. But nearly seven years after five people went missing, including witnesses scheduled to testify against Honken regarding his meth operation, a mobbed-up jailhouse informant would lead investigators to the victims bodies and a murder plot would unravel. At the time of his death, Honken had served more than 22 years in an Indiana prison. }); 3d 937", "From meth to murder: How a small-town Iowa boy became the state's first death row inmate in 50 years", "FindLaw's United States Eighth Circuit case and opinions", "Witnesses Testify about Honken's Drug Operation", "UNITED STATES OF AMERICA vs. ANGELA JOHNSON", "184 F3d 961 United States of America v. Dustin Lee Honken", "Fred Tokars, lawyer who set up murder of his wife, dies in prison", "OPINION: Maybe wife-killer Fred Tokars got a fate worse than death", "Iowa meth kingpin is 3rd executed by US government this week", "Johnson v. United States, 860 F. Supp. DeGeus body was found a few miles from the wooded area. The two eventually located Nicholson. A statement from the Department of Justice echoed the Duncans' sentiment that due process had been seen through. They sentenced him to death specifically for the brutality and senselessness of the childrens killings. } Consequently, Honken's offense level under the United States Federal Sentencing Guidelines was set at 38, which called for a sentence of 235 to 293 months in prison. [35], On July 25, 2019, United States Attorney General William Barr announced that the moratorium on federal executions would be lifted after approving the use of the single drug pentobarbital for federal executions. Dustin Honken, 52, would become the first defendant in an Iowa case to be put to death since 1963 if he is executed as scheduled on Friday. During this time, he plotted to murder Cobeen, police officers, and chemists, and to destroy evidence against him. ga('ads.send', { The elderly couple noticed a few things missing but nothing significant, almost like Lori had packed hurriedly. [7][19], Honken was charged with the murders in 2001. I am sorry for what I have done, but I haven't done these heinous crimes the government accuses me of.