James Garrett Freeman

James Garrett Freeman (November 12, 1980[1] – January 27, 2016[2]) was an American man who was convicted, sentenced to death, and executed for murder in Texas.

James Garrett Freeman
Born(1980-11-12)November 12, 1980
Lissie, Texas, U.S.
DiedJanuary 27, 2016(2016-01-27) (aged 35)
Huntsville Unit, Huntsville, Texas, U.S.
Cause of deathExecution by lethal injection
Criminal statusExecuted
Conviction(s)Capital murder
Criminal penaltyDeath (November 7, 2008)
Details
VictimsJustin Hurst, 34
DateMarch 17, 2007
Allan B. Polunsky Unit houses the State of Texas death row for men.
Huntsville Unit, the location of the Texas state execution chamber.

Freeman originated from Lissie, an unincorporated area in Wharton County, Texas. He was a welder, but was unemployed at the time he committed murder. He had no record of violence. On March 17, 2007 Freeman engaged in a high-speed chase with Texas Parks and Wildlife Department (TPWD) officers. At the Lissie Cemetery, where the chase ended, he fired at TPWD staff with an AK-47 and a Glock pistol. Justin Hurst, a 34-year old TPWD game warden, was struck twice and killed.[3] Hurst had turned 34 that day. Freeman was shot four times and survived.

Freeman, Texas Department of Criminal Justice (TDCJ)#999539,[1] was convicted and sentenced to death. While on death row he was in Polunsky Unit.[4] He was executed at Huntsville Unit on January 27, 2016, nine years after the murder.

The Justin Hurst Wildlife Management Area (WMA) of the TPWD, located in Brazoria County, Texas,[5] was renamed after the victim in 2007. It was formerly the Peach Point WMA.[6]

See also

References
  1. "Freeman, James." Texas Department of Criminal Justice. Retrieved on February 4, 2016.
  2. Last Statement Freeman, James. Texas Department of Criminal Justice. Retrieved on February 4, 2016.
  3. O'Hare, Peggy (November 7, 2008). "Wharton jury sentences game warden's killer to death". Houston Chronicle. Archived from the original on August 22, 2012. Retrieved February 4, 2016.
  4. Barned-Smith, St. John (January 28, 2016). "Wharton County man executed in killing of game warden". Houston Chronicle. Retrieved February 4, 2016.
  5. "Justin Hurst (WMA)." Texas Parks and Wildlife Department. Retrieved on March 31, 2016.
  6. "TPWD Dedicates Justin Hurst WMA in Honor of Fallen Warden." Texas Parks and Wildlife Department. October 15, 2007. Retrieved on March 31, 2016.
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