STOP the Execution of James Broadnax

Florida intends to execute James Broadnax on April 30, 2026 for the 2008 murders of Matthew Butler and Stephen Swan.

We oppose this execution as we do every execution. Capital punishment is an act of state-sanctioned violence that violates the sacred dignity of every human life. In the words of Saint Pope John Paul II, “The dignity of human life must never be taken away, even in the case of someone who has done great evil.” 

James’s legal team has filed two appeals for a retrial and a stay of execution based on severe constitutional errors in his original sentencing. At the time of his sentencing, the prosecution struck every eligible Black juror. The presiding judge intervened on only one occasion, and ultimately just one Black juror remained on the otherwise all-white jury, violating precedent that determined excluding jurors based on race to be a violation of the 14th amendment. 

During the trial, the prosecution built a case of James’s propensity for crime based on individual rap lyrics that James had written, rather than any actual existing criminal charges against him.

Please contact Governor Greg Abbott and the Texas Board of Pardons and Parole today and urge them to stop this execution.