Harold McQueen Jr.

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Harold I. McQueen Jr. (July 25, 1952 – July 1, 1997) was the first person Kentucky executed after the death penalty was brought back in 1976. He was sentenced to death for murder after a 1980 robbery in Richmond, Kentucky.

What happened
On January 17, 1980, McQueen and his half-brother, William Keith Burnell, with McQueen’s girlfriend Linda Rose, robbed a Minit Mart store. They went in late at night with a .22 pistol. They told the clerk, 22-year-old Rebecca O’Hearn, to empty the cash register and then shot her in the face and head. They took about $1,500, food stamps, and a surveillance camera, which they hid in a bag and later dumped in a pond. A park ranger found O’Hearn’s body soon after; she died at the hospital.

The trial
McQueen and Burnell were tried together in March 1981. Both were found guilty of murder. The jury sentenced Burnell to 20 years for the robbery and two 20-year terms for murder and the robbery, but they did not give him the death penalty. McQueen was sentenced to death for the murder, with the robbery portion earning him 20 years.

Background
McQueen had a troubled life. He began drinking at age 10 and grew up with grandparents who didn’t support him. He became an alcoholic in high school and started using drugs. He joined the Army at 19, hoping to turn his life around, but he became addicted to heroin. He married, but his wife left him, and he attempted suicide. He also had a lengthy criminal record before the murder.

Legal appeals and concerns
Amnesty International later raised concerns about his case, noting that Burnell had a private attorney funded by Burnell’s father, while McQueen’s court-appointed attorney had only been paid $1,000 and did not adequately prepare his defense. In 1984, a court heard that McQueen’s attorney had not talked to his family and did not present mitigating evidence, such as neglect in childhood or possible brain damage from long-term drug use.

Death row and final years
While on death row, McQueen became a devout Catholic. Three days before his execution, he agreed to a 19-minute videotaped message called “It Could Happen to You,” where he discussed his life and urged young people to stay away from drugs. The video was released about a year after his death.

Execution
McQueen was executed by electric chair at the Kentucky State Penitentiary in Eddyville on July 1, 1997. His final statement included apologies to O’Hearn’s family and to his own family, and he encouraged people to keep fighting the death penalty.

Aftermath
The Courier Journal later noted inconsistencies in statements given by Linda Rose after the crime, suggesting the jury may have relied on her testimony to identify the shooter. McQueen was the first person executed in Kentucky since 1962, and as of 2024, he is the last person in Kentucky to be executed in the electric chair. He is also the only person since the death penalty was reinstated to be executed involuntarily in Kentucky, meaning he did not waive his appeals; later Kentucky executions were preceded by waivers.