MONTGOMERY, Ala. (WDNews) — Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey has scheduled the execution of death row inmate Jeffrey James Lee for June 11, 2026, for his conviction in the 1998 killings of two people during a robbery at a Dallas County pawn shop.
According to state officials and court records, Lee was convicted of capital murder in the Dec. 12, 1998, deaths of Jimmy Ellis, owner of Jimmy’s Pawn Shop near Orrville, and employee Elaine Thompson. Prosecutors said Lee entered the business armed with a sawed-off shotgun and shot both victims during the robbery.
A third employee, Helen King, survived after being shot during the incident. Lee was also convicted of attempted murder in that case.
Gov. Ivey set the execution during a 30-hour window beginning at midnight on June 11 and ending at 6 a.m. on June 12. Alabama plans to carry out the execution using nitrogen hypoxia, a method that replaces breathable air with nitrogen gas.
Lee’s case has drawn attention because a jury voted 7-5 to recommend a sentence of life in prison without the possibility of parole. However, the trial judge overrode that recommendation and sentenced Lee to death under Alabama’s former judicial override law. The state ended the practice in 2017, but the change was not applied retroactively.
Court records show Lee continues to pursue legal challenges related to Alabama’s nitrogen hypoxia protocol. Appeals and other legal proceedings remain ongoing.
Lee is currently scheduled to become the next inmate executed in Alabama unless a court grants a stay or other relief before the execution date.
