Execution by nitrogen gas & lethal injection: Texas and Alabama carry out two deaths; nine more scheduled this year


Execution by nitrogen gas & lethal injection: Texas and Alabama carry out two deaths; nine more scheduled this year

Two US inmates were executed Thursday in separate states, with one put to death by nitrogen gas in Alabama and another by lethal injection in Texas. The executions, carried out within 18 minutes of each other, bring the total number of US executions this year to 33, the highest since 2014.In Alabama, Geoffrey West, 50, was pronounced dead at 6:22 p.m. US Central Time for the 1997 murder of Margaret Berry, 33, a mother of two, during a gas station robbery in Attalla. In his final statement, provided to USA TODAY by his attorneys, West apologized and reflected on faith, saying, “I am at peace because I know where I am going and look forward to seeing Mrs. Berry when I get there… I urge everyone, especially young people, to find God.“Berry’s son, Will Berry, who was 11 when his mother was killed, had sought a reprieve, expressing a wish to meet West before his execution. “I believe that in seeking to execute Mr. West, the state of Alabama is playing God,” he wrote in an opinion piece. Alabama Governor Kay Ivey declined to commute the sentence, citing the state’s legal duty to punish egregious crimes. Alabama Attorney General Steve Marshall said, “Margaret did not have to senselessly die… Justice is how we restore peace to the communities they leave behind.”Just 18 minutes later in Texas, Blaine Milam, 35, was executed by lethal injection for the 2008 killing of his girlfriend’s 13-month-old daughter, Amora Carson, during what Milam and the mother described as an “exorcism.” Court documents described the child’s death as including 24 bite marks, 18 broken ribs, severe skull fractures, and genital injuries. Milam’s final words, according to the Texas Department of Criminal Justice, thanked the department for allowing him to join a faith-based program on death row. “I love you all, bring me home Jesus,” he said.Milam’s attorneys argued that he is intellectually disabled and that the bite mark evidence in his case was unreliable. The U.S. 5th Circuit Court of Appeals rejected those claims. His case was featured in Werner Herzog’s 2013 documentary, “On Death Row.”Both executions mark the fifth instance this year where two inmates were executed on the same day in the United States. Florida has carried out the most executions this year, followed by South Carolina and Texas.President Donald Trump, a proponent of capital punishment, signed a presidential memorandum on Thursday directing federal prosecutors to pursue the death penalty in Washington, D.C., for the nation’s most heinous crimes. The memo, cited by USA TODAY, highlights Trump’s commitment to enforcing federal capital punishment despite opposition from some politicians, lawyers, and non-governmental organizations.Nine more executions are scheduled in eight states by the end of 2025, putting the U.S. on pace to execute at least 42 inmates this year, a number not seen since 2012. The next execution is set for Sept. 30 in Florida, where Victor Tony Jones is scheduled to be lethally injected for the 1990 stabbing murders of inventor Jacob Nestor and his wife, Matilda Nestor. October is expected to be particularly busy, with seven executions planned across multiple states, including Florida, Mississippi, Missouri, Texas, and Arizona.



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    It can take years to find the courage to say what you really think. To speak up in a meeting, to disagree with someone you respect, or to tell people who you truly are. Melinda Gates, who has spent much of her life working to lift up women and girls around the world, believes that finding this kind of voice is one of the surest signs of strength. A woman with a voice, she says, is by definition a strong woman. But she is honest about the other half of the truth too. The search to find that voice can be remarkably difficult. Getting there is rarely simple, because so many quiet pressures push people, and women in particular, to stay silent. The quote holds both ideas at once, the strength and the struggle. Quote of the day by Melinda Gates “A woman with a voice is by definition a strong woman. But the search to find that voice can be remarkably difficult.” Who is Melinda Gates Melinda Gates, also known as Melinda French Gates, is an American philanthropist and one of the world’s most prominent advocates for women and girls. With her former husband she co-founded the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, which has spent enormous sums on global health, education and reducing poverty. She later started her own organisation focused on advancing women. Much of her work has centred on a single idea, that helping women find their footing, their rights and their voices makes life better for whole communities. She first shared this line in a 2003 speech, while talking about how a girl grows into a strong woman. The answer, she suggested, begins with one deceptively simple step. She finds her voice. Understand the meaning behind the quote by Melinda Gates The quote makes two linked points. The first is a kind of definition. To Melinda Gates, having a voice is itself a mark of strength. By voice she does not simply mean the ability to talk. She means the power to express what you think, to stand up for yourself, and to be heard. A person who can do that, she argues, is by definition strong, because doing it takes real courage. The second point is the honest catch. Finding that voice is hard. It is not something most people are simply handed. It often has to be searched for, sometimes over many years and against a great deal of resistance. So the quote celebrates the strength of having a voice while being honest that reaching it is a real struggle. Why finding a voice can be so hard When she first said this, Melinda Gates went on to explain why the search is so difficult. Part of it, she noted, is unequal access to education. In many parts of the world, women and girls receive far less schooling than men, and some receive none at all, which makes it harder to find and use their voices. But she pointed to something subtler too. From a young age, she said, people meet countless small pressures, some obvious and some hidden, that quietly encourage them to mute themselves in order to please others. Over time, those little nudges add up, and many people learn to stay quiet long before they ever discover what they might have said. Why this quote is relevant Although Melinda Gates was speaking about women, the struggle she describes is one many people recognise. Plenty of us, of any background, have held back an opinion, swallowed a disagreement, or gone along with something we did not believe, simply to avoid friction. The quote is a reminder that learning to speak up is not a small thing. It is a real form of strength, and one worth building. It also gently reframes the difficulty. If finding your voice feels hard, that does not mean something is wrong with you. It means you are attempting something that has always been hard, and that the struggle itself is part of growing stronger. How to apply this quote in daily life You do not have to change the world to use this idea. It starts with small choices. Start small and build up. You do not need your full voice overnight. Speak up in low stakes moments first, and let your confidence grow from there. Notice the pressures that quiet you. Pay attention to when and why you hold back. Often it is a fear of displeasing someone, and naming that pressure makes it easier to push past. Surround yourself with people who listen. It is far easier to find your voice among people who respect it. Seek out friends or mentors who want to hear what you think. Help others find their voice too. If you have found yours, use it to make room for quieter people. Simply asking someone what they think can be the nudge they needed. Other famous quotes by Melinda Gates Gates has spoken and written often about people, equality and possibility. Here are a few more of her lines. “If you want to lift up humanity, empower women. It is the most comprehensive, pervasive, high-leverage investment you can make in human beings.” “Women and girls should be able to determine their own future, no matter where they’re born.” “Connect deeply with others. Our humanity is the one thing that we all have in common.” “Optimism isn’t a belief that things will automatically get better; it’s a conviction that we can make things better.” There is something encouraging in the way Melinda Gates frames this. She does not pretend that finding your voice is easy, and she does not treat the struggle as a weakness. Instead she calls the search itself a sign of strength. Whoever you are, the lesson holds. The quiet work of learning to say what you think, and to be heard, is worth doing. | World News

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