© 2026. The Trustees of Indiana University
Copyright Complaints
1229 East Seventh Street, Bloomington, Indiana 47405
News, Arts and Culture from WFIU Public Radio and WTIU Public Television
Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations

Final Federal Execution Carried Out Before Trump Leaves Office

Federal death row prisoners are housed in Terre Haute.
Federal death row prisoners are housed in Terre Haute.

The Trump administration has carried out its 13th and final federal execution, five days before President-elect Joe Biden is sworn in.

The execution early Saturday of Dustin Higgs concludes an unprecedented run of executions since July, when Trump resumed the federal death penalty after a 17-year hiatus. Biden has signaled he’ll end federal executions.

The 48-year-old Higgs was convicted in the killings of three women in a Maryland wildlife refuge. He was the third inmate to receive a lethal injection this week at the federal prison in Terre Haute, Indiana.

A December clemency petition for Higgs said he had been a model prisoner and was a dedicated father to a son born shortly after his arrest.

This story will be updated.