NEWS
We will not be silent.
The Last Face Death Row Inmates See - Rolling Stone
MARCH 29, 2025
McAlester, Oklahoma, looks like an Edward Hopper painting in the 5 a.m. gloom. An orange cat slinks through a neon puddle outside a gas station; a donut store sign flickers; and then there’s the scene outside Oklahoma State Penitentiary, also known as Big Mac. Underneath the harsh glow of streetlights, the Rev. Jeff Hood inspects a spiderweb woven between the trees hemming in the prison, the only thing that McAlester is really known for. Studded with dew, the gossamer strands make a beautiful trap in the predawn darkness. “Don’t wanna mess up his web,” Hood says, his Southern drawl wistful, as the eight-legged architect chitters off...
Family of death row inmate calls for Tennessee governor to examine case in Christmas plea - USA TODAY
DECEMBER 15, 2024
Noted anti-death penalty activist Rev. Jeff Hood, who spoke at the press conference titled "Not Another Christmas Without Gary," told USA TODAY in an interview ahead of the press conference that acting as a spiritual advisor to those on death row during the holiday season brings clarity to his work.
"Christmas is a moment that speaks to what is possible in terms of our criminal justice system, that that love can break in, can change the hardest of hearts, and love can make things whole...
Comforting the condemned: Inside the execution chamber with reverend focused on humanity - USA TODAY
JUNE 16, 2024
While Hood says he was being tortured by his own emotions during the process, his focus was on ensuring Hosier felt love and felt like a human being.
"I think that in the last few weeks, David got a lot of his dignity back," Hood said.
"I'm the luckiest man on Earth," Hosier said in a final statement sent to reporters shortly before he was put to death. "I've been able to speak the the truth of my innocence ... I leave you all with love."
“It Was the Most Violent Thing I’ve Ever Seen” -SLATE
February 1, 2024
Last week, Alabama had a “first in the nation” moment. But not in a way that many people wanted to celebrate. Alabama became one of the first places in the world to attempt an execution using nitrogen gas. Some called this execution a straight up “experiment.” The United Nations warned it might violate human rights treaties that the U.S. has signed on to.
The prisoner who was killed was named Kenneth Smith. Everyone who knew him just called him Kenny. And even though all this happened a few days back, it felt worthwhile to linger on, even now. So I called up someone who was there, someone who could tell me what exactly went down in the execution chamber.
The Rev. Jeff Hood is an anti–death penalty advocate. He’s also a spiritual adviser for death row inmates. Kenny Smith’s execution was the fifth Hood has been to in just a little over a year...
Alabama Death Row spiritual adviser: ‘McWhorter was a murderer… Alabama was too’ - AL.COM
November 17, 2023
“When I first encountered Casey, he was pissed off at the world and where he is at,” Hood said a few hours after McWhorter was put to death. “(Casey) was interested in more. He didn’t really know how to describe that more, but he would say things to me like, ‘Jeff, can you help me be who I am?’”
Hood, who currently lives in Arkansas, works with death row inmates across the country. He started talking with McWhorter several months ago, and they developed a close bond—they were as much friends as congregant and priest.
“I do know that on the drive down, as the tires rolled on, I felt like I was traveling to see a friend much more than I was traveling to witness something horrible,” Hood said.
Death Row Minister on Being in the Execution Chamber: 'It's Devastating' - NEWSWEEK
JULY 27, 2023
"So when the execution actually happened, they treated me as if I was the public enemy number one," Hood said, adding that he was led into the chamber by six officers.
"Just really intimidating, awful behavior. But when I got in the execution room, it was almost like all of that just kind of faded away, because there was Scott, just laying there."
They spoke about how far Eizember had come since they first met, he said.
"As the moment got closer, he really looked at me and he said, 'Jeff, I love you'...and it was really an incredibly powerful moment for me."