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Former Soldier Who Said Witchcraft Made Him Kill a Georgia Nurse Has Been Executed

Court documents said he had become obsessed with the idea that assaulting her would reverse a spell she put on him.

A former soldier who said an fixation with witchcraft led him to kill a Georgia nurse who he believed had put a spell on him has been executed by the federal government. William Emmett LeCroy, 50, died by lethal injection Tuesday night at an Indiana prison, according to the Associated Press. His last words were: “Sister Battista [his spiritual adviser] is about to receive in the postal service my last statement.” LeCroy broke into the home of Joann Lee Tiesler in October 2001 and raped her and slashed her throat. He had become obsessed with the idea that assaulting her would reverse a spell she put on him, court documents said. His federal execution is the fifth carried out in 2020 following a 17-year period without any. Another execution, of Christopher Vialva, is scheduled for Thursday.