Brandon Bernard

{{Short description|American criminal (1980–2020)}} {{Use American English|date=December 2025}} {{Use mdy dates|date=December 2020}} {{Infobox criminal | honorific_prefix = | name = Brandon Bernard | image = Brandon Bernard (3x4 cropped).jpg | caption = | birth_name = Brandon Anthony Micah Bernard | birth_date = {{birth date|1980|7|3}} | birth_place = San Antonio, Texas, U.S. | death_date = {{death date and age|2020|12|10|1980|7|3}} | death_place = USP Terre Haute, Indiana, U.S. | criminal_status = Executed by lethal injection | allegiance = 212 Piru Bloods | motive = Robbery | conviction = First degree murder (2 counts)<br/>Conspiracy to commit murder<br/>Carjacking resulting in death | conviction_penalty = Death (June 13, 2000) | victims = 2 | date = June 21, 1999 | locations = Fort Hood, Texas | imprisoned = United States Penitentiary, Terre Haute }}

'''Brandon Anthony Micah Bernard'''<ref name="birth">Texas Birth Index, 1903–1997</ref> (July 3, 1980 – December 10, 2020) was an American man convicted and executed for the 1999 robbery, kidnapping, and murder of Todd Bagley, 26, and Stacie Bagley, 28. He was sentenced to death for the murders and remained on death row until his execution in December 2020. Bernard's conviction and execution attracted controversy due to questions about the extent of his culpability in the murders. In the time leading to his execution, prominent politicians, public figures, and five surviving jurors who convicted him advocated for his sentence to be commuted.

Bernard spent most of his childhood in Killeen, Texas. In his early teens, he began committing crimes such as burglary and joined a neighborhood gang. His crimes and rebellious behaviors led him to being kicked out of several schools and prosecuted in the juvenile criminal justice system. In 1999, Bernard and four teenaged accomplices robbed, kidnapped, and murdered two youth pastors—Todd and Stacie Bagley. After forcing the pastors into the trunk of their car, the ringleader, Christopher Andre Vialva, shot both in the head before Bernard set the car on fire. Todd died instantly from the gunshot, and Stacie's cause of death is disputed.

A last minute request for stay of execution was rejected by the United States Supreme Court, and Bernard was executed hours later on December 10, 2020.

==Early life== Brandon Anthony Micah Bernard<ref>{{cite web|title=Obituary for Mr. Brandon Anthony Micah Bernard at Royal Funeral Home, Inc.|url=https://www.royalfh.com/guestbook/mr-brandon-bernard|website= royalfh.com|access-date=April 18, 2022|language=en}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Case Summaries for Modern Federal Death Sentences |url=https://deathpenaltyinfo.org/state-and-federal-info/federal-death-penalty/case-summaries-for-modern-federal-death-sentences |website=Death Penalty Information Center |access-date=December 11, 2020}}</ref> was born on July 3, 1980, to army nurse Thelma Louise (Johnson) and Kenneth Richmond Bernard in San Antonio, Texas.<ref name="birth"/> He had two younger siblings. Because of his mother's transfer to Alaska, the family moved briefly to Fairbanks, Alaska, from 1982 to November 1984, and then moved to Killeen, Texas. He spent the majority of his childhood in Killeen. As a child, Bernard had asthma. In 1986, Bernard attended school at the Seventh-Day Adventist Academy. The family spent the summer of 1987 in Colorado for his mother's medical training. In September 1992, Bernard's intoxicated father sprayed his mother in the face with mace. The couple divorced in 1993.<ref name="early life">{{cite web |last1=Altatis |first1=Conan |title=Brandon Bernard biography: 13 things about Christopher Vialva's accomplice |url=https://conandaily.com/2020/12/10/brandon-bernard-biography-13-things-about-christopher-vialvas-accomplice/ |website=CONAN Daily |access-date=December 11, 2020 |language=en |date=December 10, 2020}}</ref>

In 1994, Bernard's cousin, Melsimeon Pollock, joined the household. Pollock and Bernard began burglarizing houses in early 1995. Bernard's rebellious and criminal behavior resulted in him being bounced between his parents' households, multiple different schools, and five months in a juvenile detention facility in Brownwood, Texas, in 1995. Bernard became a member of the organized neighborhood gang known as "212 Piru Bloods". In 1996, Bernard attempted to gain employment, but failed to do so. He completed his GED in 1997, and enrolled as a senior at Killeen High School for the 1997–1998 school year. While attending Killeen High School, he received decent grades and had good attendance. In the summer of 1998, Bernard attempted to join the United States Army, but was rejected because of his juvenile offenses.<ref name="early life"/>

==Murders of Todd and Stacie Bagley== [[File:Belton lake.jpg|thumb|Belton lake recreation area where the murders occurred]] On the afternoon of June 21, 1999, Brandon Bernard, 18; Christopher Andre Vialva, 19; Terry Terrell Brown, 17; Christopher Michael Lewis, 17; and Tony Sparks, 16, approached Todd and Stacie Bagley, two youth pastors, and asked them for a ride at a gas station with plans to rob them. Once the Bagleys agreed to give them a ride, Vialva held the couple at gunpoint and forced them into the trunk. While in the trunk for several hours driving around, the Bagleys spoke through an opening in the back seat and urged their abductors to accept Jesus into their hearts and spare their lives. The perpetrators then robbed the Bagleys by using their ATM card to withdraw cash, stealing money, stealing jewelry, and seeking to pawn Stacie's wedding ring. Soon after, the teens pulled to the side of the road at Belton Lake recreation area<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://kdhnews.com/news/crime/killeen-men-s-appeal-in-1999-murder-case-denied/article_56887d06-c048-11e8-850d-575868594d7f.html|title=Killeen men's appeal in 1999 murder case denied|first=Katelyn Robertson | Herald staff|last=writer|website=The Killeen Daily Herald|date=September 24, 2018 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20220522085739/https://kdhnews.com/news/crime/killeen-men-s-appeal-in-1999-murder-case-denied/article_56887d06-c048-11e8-850d-575868594d7f.html|archive-date=May 22, 2022}}</ref> and poured lighter fluid inside the vehicle while the Bagleys sang "Jesus Loves Me". Vialva then shot both of the Bagleys in the head, killing Todd instantly. Bernard then set the car on fire.

The exact cause of Stacie's death is disputed. An autopsy commissioned by the prosecution at Bernard's trial claimed Stacie died of smoke inhalation as a result of the fire Bernard started. However, the chief medical examiner of Galveston County Stephen Pustilnik came to the conclusion that Stacie was "medically dead" from the gunshot wound to the head before Bernard started the fire.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Magdaleno |first1=Charles Trepany and Johnny |title='He was such a reformed person': Kim Kardashian mourns Brandon Bernard's execution |url=https://www.usatoday.com/story/entertainment/celebrities/2020/12/10/kim-kardashian-calls-brandon-bernard-scheduled-execution-shameful/3889065001/ |website=USA TODAY |access-date=December 12, 2020}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Feds put first Black inmate to death since execution restart |url=https://apnews.com/article/race-and-ethnicity-racial-injustice-terre-haute-executions-archive-d54440254ddea7685bcab5417612f0de |website=AP NEWS |access-date=December 11, 2020 |date=September 24, 2020}}</ref><ref name="auto1">{{cite web |title=US carries out rare execution during presidential transition |url=https://apnews.com/article/joe-biden-donald-trump-race-and-ethnicity-prisons-killeen-13044e3f1ab9e0e140c57d8012b67abb |website=AP NEWS |access-date=December 11, 2020 |date=December 10, 2020}}</ref>

The perpetrators ran down the hill to get to Bernard's car and tried to drive away, but the car slid off the road and went into a muddy ditch. The perpetrators were trying to get the car out of the ditch as first responders arrived at the scene due to reports of a fire, and they were arrested when firemen found the bodies in the trunk of the burned car.<ref>{{Cite web |title=UNITED STATES v. BERNARD (2002) |url=https://caselaw.findlaw.com/court/us-5th-circuit/1447498.html#footnote_4 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20250518141640/https://caselaw.findlaw.com/court/us-5th-circuit/1447498.html%23footnote_4 |archive-date=May 18, 2025 |access-date=2025-05-18 |website=Findlaw |language=en-US}}</ref>

===Legal proceedings=== Bernard's trial was held in 2000, one year after the murders. Since the crimes took place at Fort Hood, the trial was held in federal court instead of state court. He was convicted of carjacking, conspiracy to commit murder, and two counts of first degree murder.<ref>{{Cite web|title=BOP: Federal Executions|url=https://www.bop.gov/about/history/federal_executions.jsp|access-date=2022-01-10|website=www.bop.gov}}</ref> He was sentenced to death on June 13, 2000.<ref>{{cite news|title=Two men get death sentence for killing Iowa couple at Fort Hood|url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/abilene-reporter-news-two-men-get-death/125849979/|newspaper=Abilene Reporter-News|date=June 14, 2000|page=37|via=Newspapers.com|access-date=June 4, 2023}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=Brandon Bernard Inmate Register Number 91908-080|url=https://www.bop.gov/resources/pdfs/offender_information_bernard.pdf|work=Federal Bureau of Prisons|access-date=June 4, 2023}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Advocates are fighting to stop the federal execution of Brandon Bernard, the ninth of this year |url=https://www.cbsnews.com/news/brandon-bernard-execution-terre-haute-indiana/ |website=www.cbsnews.com |date=December 10, 2020 |access-date=December 12, 2020}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|title=United States of America, Plaintiff-appellee, v. Brandon Bernard and Christopher Andre Vialva, Defendants-appellants, 299 F.3d 467 (5th Cir. 2002)|url=https://law.justia.com/cases/federal/appellate-courts/F3/299/467/521658/|access-date=2022-02-09|website=Justia Law|language=en}}</ref>

Christopher Vialva (May 10, 1980 – September 24, 2020) was convicted of the same charges and sentenced to death as well. He was executed on September 24, 2020.<ref>{{cite web |title=Christopher Vialva executed for 1999 murder of Texas couple, the seventh federal execution since July |url=https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2020/09/24/christopher-vialva-black-man-death-row-lawyer-argues-racial-bias/3519379001/ |website=www.usatoday.com |access-date=February 20, 2021}}</ref> In a video he released shortly before his execution, he expressed remorse and asked for clemency. "I committed a grave wrong when I was a lost kid and took two precious lives from this world," he said. "Every day, I wish I could right this wrong."<ref>{{Cite web |last=Tarm |first=Michael |title=Christopher Vialva executed for 1999 murder of Texas couple, the seventh federal execution since July |url=https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2020/09/24/christopher-vialva-black-man-death-row-lawyer-argues-racial-bias/3519379001/ |access-date=2022-03-04 |website=USA TODAY |language=en-US}}</ref> Vialva's last meal consisted of food from Pizza Hut.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Segura |first=Liliana |date=2020-10-17 |title=The Hidden Cruelty of Trump's Executions |url=https://theintercept.com/2020/10/17/trump-execution-christopher-vialva/ |access-date=2022-03-04 |website=The Intercept |language=en-US |archive-url=https://archive.today/20230607094557/https://theintercept.com/2020/10/17/trump-execution-christopher-vialva/ |archive-date=2023-06-07}}</ref> His final words were "Father...heal their hearts with grace and love. I'm ready, father."

Brown and Lewis, who both testified against Bernard and Vialva during the trial, both pleaded guilty to second degree murder and each received 248 months in prison.<ref>{{cite news |title=Planned Execution Stirs Debate Over Punishment for Young Offenders |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2020/12/09/us/politics/brandon-bernard-death-penalty.html |newspaper=The New York Times |date=December 9, 2020 |access-date=February 23, 2021|last1=Fuchs |first1=Hailey }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|last=Judge|first=LEE YEAKEL, District|title=SPARKS v. U.S. {{!}} Nos. W-11-CV-123, W-16-CV-435... {{!}} 20180326518{{!}} Leagle.com|url=https://www.leagle.com/decision/infdco20180326518|access-date=2022-02-09|website=Leagle|language=en}}</ref> Brown was released from prison on January 6, 2020, and Lewis was released from prison on June 23, 2017.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Inmate Locator|url=https://www.bop.gov/inmateloc/|access-date=2022-02-09|website=www.bop.gov}}</ref>

Another youth, 15-year-old Gregory Hardin Lynch, was prosecuted for providing the handgun which was used to murder the Bagleys. Bernard had loaned the handgun, which belonged to him, to Lynch prior to the murders. Lynch pleaded guilty to conspiracy to possess a stolen firearm and received a five-year sentence.<ref>{{Cite news |date=2000-06-14 |title=Lynch |pages=37 |work=Abilene Reporter-News |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/96911049/lynch/ |access-date=2022-03-04}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=writer |first=Katelyn Robertson {{!}} Herald staff |title=Killeen men's appeal in 1999 murder case denied |url=https://kdhnews.com/news/crime/killeen-men-s-appeal-in-1999-murder-case-denied/article_56887d06-c048-11e8-850d-575868594d7f.html |access-date=2022-03-04 |website=The Killeen Daily Herald |date=September 24, 2018 |language=en}}</ref> Lynch committed additional crimes in prison, extending his sentence but was eventually released on December 16, 2008.

Sparks was initially sentenced to life without parole, but his sentence was reduced to 420 months followed by five years of supervised release in March 2018, having already served 214 months, due to him being a juvenile at the time. He is scheduled for release on June 8, 2030.<ref>{{cite web |title=Judge reduces sentence of man convicted in brutal local murder |url=https://www.kwtx.com/content/news/Judge-reduces-sentence-of-man-convicted-in-brutal-local-murder-477541363.html |website=www.kwtx.com |date=March 21, 2018 |access-date=February 20, 2021}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=Brandon Bernard Awaits Execution Amid Calls for Clemency|date=December 5, 2020 |url=https://theintercept.com/2020/12/05/federal-executions-brandon-bernard/}}</ref>

== Execution and controversy== thumb|Vigil and protest held against the execution of Bernard Bernard exhausted his appeals on January 19, 2016, but at the time, the U.S. federal government had a de facto moratorium on capital punishment. Bernard received an execution date after U.S. Attorney General William Barr ordered the resumption of federal executions in 2019.<ref>{{Cite web |date= |title=Admin Record - BOP Protocol |url=https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/20425408-admin-record-bop-protocol/ |access-date=2025-06-21 |website=www.documentcloud.org |page=864 |language=en}}</ref>

In the time preceding his execution, controversy arose over whether Bernard should have been sentenced to death and executed, in part because of President Donald Trump's lame-duck status.<ref>{{cite web|date=December 11, 2020|title=Brandon Bernard: First execution of Trump's final days goes ahead|url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-55261224|access-date=December 11, 2020|website=BBC News}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|date=December 10, 2020|title=US carries out rare execution during presidential transition|url=https://apnews.com/article/joe-biden-donald-trump-race-and-ethnicity-prisons-killeen-13044e3f1ab9e0e140c57d8012b67abb|access-date=December 11, 2020|website=AP NEWS}}</ref> Bernard's legal team filed appeals on the basis that his prosecutor withheld the information that he was a low-level gang member, making him less likely to be a future offender. This revelation, combined with concerns that Bernard's attorneys did not adequately defend him at trial, convinced five out of the nine living jurors who voted to convict Bernard to advocate for his sentence to be commuted to life in prison.<ref>{{Cite news|last=Lynch|first=Sarah N.|date=December 11, 2020|title=U.S. executes Brandon Bernard, over objections from several jurors in his trial|language=en|work=Reuters|url=https://www.reuters.com/article/uk-usa-executions-bernard-idUSKBN28L09R|access-date=December 12, 2020}}</ref>

Former federal prosecutor Angela Moore, who had initially argued for upholding the death sentence on appeal, also pressed for Bernard's sentence to be commuted to life. She cited new studies that suggested 18-year-olds lack an adult's ability to control their impulses, as well as studies that showed black teenagers are "systematically denied the benefit of their youth." She also noted Bernard's exemplary record in prison; in 20 years, he had never been cited for a disciplinary rules violation.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Moore|first=Angela|title=Op-ed: I helped put Brandon Bernard on federal death row. I now think he should live.|url=https://www.indystar.com/story/opinion/2020/11/18/op-ed-brandon-bernard-execution-prosecutor-says-he-should-live/6329685002/|access-date=December 12, 2020|website=The Indianapolis Star|language=en-US}}</ref>

Lawyers Alan Dershowitz and Ken Starr, who represented Trump in the past, requested that the Supreme Court delay the execution by two weeks, but the request was rejected and was only successful in prolonging proceedings for three hours.<ref name=":0">{{Cite web|last=Carrega|first=Christina|date=December 12, 2020|title=Two Black men have been executed within two days. Two more are set to die before Biden's inauguration|url=https://www.cnn.com/2020/12/12/us/brandon-bernard-alfred-bourgeois-executions/index.html|url-status=live|access-date=December 12, 2020|website=CNN|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201212061015/https://www.cnn.com/2020/12/12/us/brandon-bernard-alfred-bourgeois-executions/index.html |archive-date=December 12, 2020 }}</ref> Justices Stephen Breyer, Elena Kagan, and Sonia Sotomayor dissented from the Court's refusal to stay the execution and rejection of ''certiorari''.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Golde |first1=Kalvis |title=Justices refuse to delay execution of Brandon Bernard |url=https://www.scotusblog.com/2020/12/justices-refuse-to-delay-execution-of-brandon-bernard/ |website=SCOTUSblog |access-date=16 May 2025 |date=11 December 2020}}</ref> The day before Bernard's execution, Dershowitz allegedly asked Trump to commute Bernard's sentence to life imprisonment. Trump apologised but said he had already promised the Bagley family that Bernard would be executed.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/donald-trump-ap-brandon-bernard-alan-dershowitz-iowa-b2422825.html|title=Fuller picture emerges of the 13 federal executions at the end of Trump's presidency|website=The Independent|date=3 October 2023|first=Michael|last=Tarm}}</ref>

Bernard was executed by lethal injection at the United States Penitentiary in Terre Haute, Indiana. His last meal consisted of a meat lover's pizza and a brownie.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2020-12-11 |title=Trump Administration Executes Brandon Bernard After Jurors Plead For His Life |url=https://www.huffpost.com/entry/trump-administration-execute-brandon-bernard_n_5fd2a861c5b68256b113afb8 |access-date=2022-03-04 |website=HuffPost |language=en}}</ref> While preparing for the execution, Bernard spoke his last words, apologizing to the couple in whose murder he was involved, and adding that the words he spoke were "the only words that I can say that completely capture how I feel now and how I felt that day." The chemical used during the lethal injection was pentobarbital.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Bravin |first1=Jess |title=Brandon Bernard Executed Despite Protests |url=https://www.wsj.com/articles/u-s-carries-out-second-of-six-executions-set-during-biden-transition-11607663425 |website=Wall Street Journal |access-date=December 14, 2020 |date=December 11, 2020}}</ref> He was pronounced dead at 9:27 p.m. EST on December 10, 2020.<ref name="auto1"/>

==References== {{reflist}}

{{s-start}} ! colspan="3" | Executions carried out by the United States federal government {{s-bef|before=Orlando Hall|before2=<div style="font-weight: normal">November 19, 2020</div>}} {{s-ttl|title=Brandon Bernard|years=December 10, 2020}} {{s-aft|after=Alfred Bourgeois|after2=<div style="font-weight: normal">December 11, 2020</div>}} |- ! colspan="3" | Executions carried out in the United States {{s-bef|before=Orlando Hall – Federal government|before2=<div style="font-weight: normal">November 19, 2020</div>}} {{s-ttl|title=Brandon Bernard – Federal government|years=December 10, 2020}} {{s-aft|after=Alfred Bourgeois – Federal government|after2=<div style="font-weight: normal">December 11, 2020</div>}} {{s-end}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bernard, Brandon}} Category:1980 births Category:2020 deaths Category:2020 controversies in the United States Category:20th-century American murderers Category:21st-century executions of American people Category:American male criminals Category:American people convicted of assault Category:American people executed for murder Category:2020 in American law Category:Criminals from San Antonio Category:December 2020 in the United States Category:21st-century executions by the United States federal government Category:Executed African-American people Category:Executed American gangsters Category:Executed people from Texas Category:2020 in Indiana Category:People convicted of murder by the United States federal government Category:People executed by the United States federal government by lethal injection Category:20th-century African-American people Category:21st-century African-American people Category:Bloods