Texas Man Executed for Killing Infant Son After Giving Up Appeal Rights

A Texas man who had previously waived his right to appeal his death sentence was executed on Tuesday evening for the murder of his 3-month-old son over 16 years ago. This marks one of five executions scheduled across the United States in a week’s span.

Travis Mullis, 38, received lethal injection at the state prison in Huntsville and was pronounced dead at 7:01 p.m. CDT. He was sentenced to death for the brutal killing of his son, Alijah, in January 2008.

This was the fourth execution in Texas this year, which is known as the busiest state for capital punishment in the U.S. In addition to Mullis’s execution, another was carried out in Missouri that same evening, while scheduled executions are lined up for Thursday in Oklahoma and Alabama. South Carolina also executed an inmate on Friday.

According to authorities, Mullis was 21 years old at the time he drove to Galveston with his son after having an altercation with his girlfriend. It was reported that he sexually assaulted Alijah, and when the baby began to cry, Mullis strangled him. He then took the child out of the vehicle and stomped on his head, leading to his death.

The body of the infant was discovered later on a roadside. After fleeing Texas, Mullis turned himself into police in Philadelphia.

Mullis’s execution proceeded without any last-minute appeals after his attorney, Shawn Nolan, confirmed that he would not seek further action to try to save his life. Nolan stated that Texas was executing a “redeemed man” who acknowledged his guilt for the horrific crime he committed.

In Nolan’s statement, he emphasized the tragic circumstances of Mullis’s early life, detailing how he was abandoned by his biological parents and severely abused by his adoptive father. He claimed that during his time on death row, Mullis had worked toward redemption, asserting that the person who committed the crime was long gone.

Earlier on the day of his execution, Mullis declined an opportunity to speak to his attorney. Additionally, his legal team chose not to submit a clemency petition to the Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles. In a letter to U.S. District Judge George Hanks in Houston earlier this year, Mullis expressed his lack of interest in further challenges to his case. He had already accepted responsibility for his son’s death, stating that he believed his punishment was justified.

During the trial, prosecutors portrayed Mullis as a manipulative individual who rejected offers for medical and psychiatric assistance. Despite his mental health struggles, Mullis had historically fluctuated in his desire to appeal, sometimes waiving his right only to revert his decision later.

Nolan previously argued before the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals that Mullis was not mentally competent when he waived his right to appeal. Nevertheless, the court determined that Mullis had consistently chosen to forgo appeals regarding his death sentence.

The U.S. Supreme Court prohibits executing intellectually disabled individuals, yet does not have the same restrictions regarding those with serious mental illnesses.

If the remaining executions in Texas, Alabama, and Oklahoma proceed as scheduled, it will mark the first time in over two decades that five executions have been conducted within a week. In South Carolina, the execution of Freddie Owens took place on Friday, followed by the execution of Marcellus Williams in Missouri on Tuesday. Executions in Alabama and Oklahoma are slated for Thursday.