Indiana Executes Joseph Corcoran After 15-Year Hiatus on State Executions

Corcoran, convicted of a 1997 quadruple murder, was put to death despite longstanding mental health concerns raised by his attorneys.

Joseph Corcoran, 49, was executed via lethal injection early Wednesday at the Indiana State Prison, marking the state’s first execution since 2009.
Corcoran was convicted in 1999 for the 1997 killings of his brother, his sister’s fiancé, and two friends, carried out with a semi-automatic rifle in Fort Wayne, Indiana.
His attorneys argued he suffered from severe mental illness, including paranoid schizophrenia, and had repeatedly petitioned courts to halt the execution, but all appeals were denied.
Indiana Governor Eric Holcomb declined to commute the sentence, stating the case had undergone extensive judicial review over 25 years without the sentence being overturned.
The execution reignited debates over the death penalty, with religious groups and disability rights advocates protesting outside the prison, citing ethical and procedural concerns.