‘I survived a botched execution’: Death row inmate’s 45-minute ordeal
A convicted serial killer on death row in the United States has described the traumatic experience of a failed execution attempt that lasted for nearly an hour. Thomas Creech, 73, has been imprisoned in Idaho for nearly half a century, convicted of five murders across three states.
In February 2023, Creech was wheeled into the execution chamber at the Idaho Maximum Security Institution. What followed was a 45-minute struggle by medical staff to find a suitable vein to administer the lethal injection. The team attempted to insert an IV line into his arms, hands, and finally his ankles, but all attempts failed, leading to the execution being called off.
The Day of the Failed Execution
Creech detailed the events leading up to the attempt in an interview. The night before, he ate a final meal of chicken, mashed potatoes, and gravy from the prison kitchen. He said his goodbyes to his lawyers, his wife LeAnn Creech, whom he married in 1998, and his stepson.
The following morning, after praying with a spiritual adviser, he was strapped to a board and wheeled into the execution chamber. Creech recalled looking at his wife through the glass and trying to mouth an apology as the execution team began their work. "The worst ones was when they got down to my ankles," he said. "I was thinking the whole time that this is really it. I’m dead. This is my day to die."
His lawyers stated the team spent about 42 minutes in total trying to insert the IV before the process was halted just before 11 am.
Legal Fallout and a History of Violence
Legally, Creech was sentenced to death for the 1981 fatal beating of a fellow inmate, 22-year-old David Dale Jensen, while already serving a life sentence. He has offered varying accounts of his crimes, at one point claiming to have killed as many as 42 people, though he later recanted.
Following the botched procedure, his lawyers have argued that a second execution attempt would be unconstitutional, constituting "cruel and unusual" punishment and double jeopardy. Another death warrant has been issued, pending an appeal.
Josh Tewalt, Director of Idaho's prison system, defended the decision to stop the execution, stating their objective was to carry it out with "dignity, professionalism and respect." He confirmed they had trained for the possibility of being unable to establish IV access.
This case is not isolated. In the last five years, the Death Penalty Information Center has recorded at least nine botched executions in five US states, many involving similar difficulties in accessing veins. Experts cite factors like a prisoner's age, health, and past drug use, combined with execution teams' lack of experience, as common causes for these failures.
