HUNTSVILLE, Texas (AP) 鈥� A North Texas man who experts for both prosecutors and defense attorneys have said is intellectually disabled faced execution Thursday evening for the death of a retired college professor after the U.S. Supreme Court lifted a stay that had put it on hold.
If receives a lethal injection as scheduled, he would be the 600th person executed in Texas since the state resumed carrying out the death penalty in 1982.
Busby’s execution had been in doubt after the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals last week had issued a stay to further review his claims of intellectual disability. But the U.S. Supreme Court overturned the stay on Thursday at the request of the Texas Attorney General’s Office. Three of the nine justices on the high court would have allowed the stay to remain.
The Supreme Court in 2002 barred the execution of intellectually disabled people. But it has given states some discretion to decide how to determine such disabilities.
Busby was scheduled to receive a lethal injection after 6 p.m. CDT at the state penitentiary in Huntsville. He was condemned for the January 2004 suffocation death of Laura Lee Crane, a 77-year-old retired professor from Texas Christian University.
His attorneys have argued Busby is barred from being put to death because a defense expert as well as one hired by the Tarrant County District Attorney鈥檚 Office, which prosecuted the case, have both found he is intellectually disabled.
The district attorney鈥檚 office had recommended that Busby鈥檚 sentence be reduced to life in prison. But the trial judge in Busby鈥檚 case disagreed with the findings of intellectual disability and in 2023 upheld the death sentence.
In a statement Wednesday, the district attorney’s office said it requested Thursday’s execution date because 鈥渦nder current case law, we believe Mr. Busby is not intellectually disabled. We agree with the Texas Attorney General鈥檚 handling of the case.”
In December, the Supreme Court heard arguments that could change how courts may consider the cumulative effect of multiple IQ scores in assessing intellectual disability.
The Texas Attorney General鈥檚 Office had asked the U.S. Supreme Court to lift the stay, arguing Busby鈥檚 claims of intellectual disability are 鈥渕eritless鈥� and based on 鈥渃onflicting evidence.鈥� The attorney general鈥檚 office is also arguing that Busby鈥檚 claims of intellectual disability should not be reviewed because they are 鈥渢ime barred鈥� and previous similar appeals have been rejected.
鈥淏usby has litigated his (intellectual disability) claim many times over. He was not entitled to another bite at the apple,鈥� the attorney general鈥檚 office said.
In a concurring opinion that had temporarily blocked the execution, 5th Circuit Judge James Graves Jr. said 鈥渢he medical community鈥檚 consensus here is that Busby is intellectually disabled and ineligible for execution.鈥�
Two other prior for Busby had by courts.
Abraham Bonowitz, executive director of Death Penalty Action, a national anti-death penalty group, criticized the attorney鈥檚 general鈥檚 efforts to have the execution go forward without a review of the merits of Busby’s intellectual disability claims.
鈥淭he merits of this case are significant,鈥� Bonowitz said. 鈥淗ow can anyone claim this is fair due process?鈥�
Prosecutors have said Busby and his co-defendant, Kathleen Latimer, abducted Crane in her car from a Fort Worth grocery store parking lot and later put in her vehicle鈥檚 trunk as they drove around. Prosecutors said she died in the trunk after suffocating from having 23 feet (7 meters) of duct tape wrapped over her entire face, covering her mouth and nose.
Busby was arrested in Oklahoma City driving Crane鈥檚 car and led authorities to her body in Oklahoma just north of the Texas border.
After his arrest, Busby told investigators Latimer was the person who had pushed him to abduct Crane, restrain her with the tape and that he 鈥渘ever meant for her to get hurt or anything.鈥� Latimer remains in prison after receiving a life sentence for murder.
If the execution is carried out, Busby would be the fourth person put to death this year in Texas and the 12th in the country. Texas has historically held more executions than any other state.
Earlier Thursday, Oklahoma executed for killing his ex-girlfriend and her 7-month-old daughter nearly 20 years ago.
___
Lozano reported from Houston. Follow Juan A. Lozano:
Copyright © 2026 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, written or redistributed.
