Richard Moore, a 59-year-old black man, was executed on Friday in South Carolina after a 2001 conviction for the fatal shooting of convenience store clerk James Mahoney.
Moore, who claimed the killing was in self-defence during a dispute, was convicted by an all-white jury in a case that has since drawn criticism for alleged racial bias. His legal team argued that he entered the store unarmed and that his death sentence reflected discrimination rather than justice.
Governor Henry McMaster denied a last-minute clemency appeal, and the U.S. Supreme Court declined Moore’s request for a stay.
Advocates, including a former corrections director, supported clemency, arguing the case would not have led to the death penalty in most states. Moore’s case has added to debates on racial disparity in the U.S. justice system, as advocates call for greater scrutiny of death penalty cases with racial implications.