Kelly Gissendaner was sentenced to death on November 20, 1998 for orchestrating the 1997 murder of her husband Douglas Gissendaner. Her execution had already been delayed twice. The first time due to in-climate winter weather, and the second because of worry over the cloudy appearance of some of the drugs that were to be used in the execution. After a litany of appeals from her lawyers in the hours leading up to her execution, the death sentence was carried out earlier last week by way of lethal injection. It was reported that she sang the words to Amazing Grace as the execution was taking place.

Gissendaner's execution was the first execution of a female by the state of Georgia since 1945. Her execution seems to have reignited the national debate over the death penalty, in particular because of the unique circumstances surrounding her case. The controversy in the case lies in the fact that Gregory Owen, Gissendaner's former lover, who was the person who actually committed the murder was sentenced to life in prison with the possibility of parole in the year 2022. To many of Gissendaner's supporters, it was seen as a grave injustice that Gissendaner received a punishment that was more severe than the man who actually took the life of her husband. In addition, her supporters cited the transformation of her life while in prison as grounds to spare her life.