Crawford’s execution will proceed, Governor Reeves says

• The execution will occur on October 15, 2025, at 6 p.m. on the grounds of the Mississippi State Penitentiary at Parchman.

A Mississippi man set to be executed by the state on Wednesday for a murder that occurred in 1993 will find no clemency from the governor. 

Short of intervention from the U.S. Supreme Court, the execution of the Charles Ray Crawford will occur tomorrow.

Crawford was sentenced in 1994 for the kidnapping, rape and murder of a 20-year-old Mississippi woman, Kristy D. Ray of Tippah County, court records show. 

A compounding factor in Governor Tate Reeves’ decision to deny Crawford’s petition for clemency is that the murder of Ray occurred while Crawford was out on bond for the rape and assault of a separate, unnamed 17-year-old female in 1991.

Crawford murdered Ray four days prior to the date of the trial by jury was set to begin for the assault on the 17-year-old. 

Crawford intended to plead insanity prior to the trial for the 1991 incident. Court documents say examinations by two doctors determined he was of sound mind. 

“Both doctors concluded that Crawford had no memory deficits, that he was in fact… (faking) his memory deficits, that he could distinguish right from wrong and that he was competent to stand trial,” court documents filed with the Supreme Court of Mississippi read. 

When facing the murder charge for Ray’s death, Crawford claimed he suffered from blackouts and did not remember certain events that occurred during Ray’s murder. Crawford was subsequently examined by five more experts. While some of those experts found Crawford to be insane at the time of the murder of Ray, others presented evidence in rebuttal to that claim. As such, Crawford’s legal representation used insanity as his defense during the trial.

However, a jury of his peers eventually found Crawford guilty, and he was sentenced to death for rape, sexual battery, burglary, and capital murder.

Capital murder in Mississippi is the highest legally defined form of causing death in another person because it is committed with “deliberate design” and is therefore premeditated, allowing for the death penalty if convicted.

Governor Reeves, in a social media post on Monday, said the facts of the case prompted his decision to deny Crawford’s petition for clemency. Those facts include that Ray’s hands were still bound when Crawford led law enforcement officials to the location of her body and that DNA evidence tied Crawford to the scene and the act. 

“This is a solemn responsibility, and it is something that no one takes pleasure in,” Governor Reeves said. “However, it is a responsibility I accept with the utmost seriousness in keeping with the oath I swore to faithfully carry out the duties of Governor. Mississippi is praying for Ms. Ray and her family. Justice must be served on behalf of victims. In Mississippi, it will be.”

According to the Mississippi Department of Corrections, now that all federal and state avenues for a stay of the sentence have been exhausted, Crawford’s execution will occur on October 15, 2025, at 6 p.m. The sentence will be carried out on the grounds of the Mississippi State Penitentiary at Parchman.

Current state law allows executions in Mississippi to be carried out by “lethal injection, nitrogen hypoxia, electrocution, or firing squad.”

According to MDOC records, the last execution in the state was on June 25 of this year for the capital murder conviction of Richard G. Jordan. It was done by lethal injection, which has been the method used in the state since 2002.