The Mississippi Supreme Court has scheduled the execution of Richard Gerald Jordan, the state's longest-serving death row inmate, for June 25. Jordan, 78, was sentenced to death in 1976 for the kidnapping and murder of Edwina Marter, and has exhausted all legal appeals after multiple attempts. The court's decision coincides with the scheduled execution of Army veteran Jeffrey Hutchinson in Florida, marking a period of increased executions in the U.S. Mississippi law permits executions to be carried out by lethal injection, nitrogen gas, electrocution, or firing squad, though the specific method for Jordan's execution was not declared. Jordan's crime involved posing as an electric company employee to gain access to the Marters' home, where he subsequently abducted and murdered Edwina Marter before demanding ransom from her husband.

Richard Gerald Jordan, aged 78, who has been on Mississippi's death row since 1976, is set to be executed on June 25 as per the Mississippi Supreme Court's ruling.

Jordan was convicted for the January 1976 kidnapping and murder of Edwina Marter, whom he killed in a forest in Harrison County after demanding a ransom from her husband by falsely claiming she was safe.

Despite multiple appeals, the most recent one being denied in October, Jordan has exhausted all state and federal legal remedies, leading to the scheduling of his execution.

The court's decision to schedule Jordan's execution came on the same day that Florida planned the execution of Army veteran Jeffrey Hutchinson, reflecting an active period of capital punishment in the United States.

Mississippi law provides several methods for carrying out the death penalty, including lethal injection, nitrogen gas, electrocution, and firing squad, but the court did not specify which method would be used for Jordan.

Jordan's crime involved a calculated deception, where he posed as an electric company employee to gain access to the Marters' home, subsequently kidnapping and murdering Edwina Marter.

The decision marks Mississippi's first execution since December 2022, further highlighting the state's resumption of capital punishment after a brief hiatus.