Elizabeth Sennett was the wife of Pastor Charles Sennett Sr who hired Billy Gray Williams, one of his tenants, to murder Elizabeth. To carry out the plan, Williams hired Kenneth Smith and John Forrest Parker to assist him. Sennett planned to pay all the men with $1,000 for the murder. Elizabeth Sennett was found dead in her Colbert County, Alabama, home on March 18, 1988. She was beaten and stabbed.
Elizabeth Sennett’s son, Mike Senett, said his mother finally got her justice as killer’s ‘debt was paid’ after he was executed by nitrogen gas at an Alabama prison. On January 25, 2024, Kenneth Eugene Smith became the first person in US history to be executed with nitrogen gas.
What happened with Elizabeth Sennett?
Elizabeth Sennett was found dead and had been stabbed eight times in the chest and once on each side of neck. Sheriff Ronnie May was one of the first on the scene and did not find Elizabeth’s pulse. She was declared dead by hospital physicians after May rode in the ambulance with her.
After all this, police searched the Elizabeth and Pastor Charles Sennett Sr home but the residence appeared setup like a home attack, investigators said. Sheriff May had to repeatedly beg Charles Sennett to leave when they were investigating another homicide a few weeks previously. Law enforcement acquired the suspects’ names from Crime Stoppers.
Sennett said he was innocent when questioned on March 25. As Sennett left, someone questioned if he knew Kenneth Smith, turning Sennett scarlet.
After the interview, Sennett left the interview and went to his church, where he met with his sons and their families and admitted to having an affair and having their mother killed. Sennett then drove to the parking lot, shot himself and died. A Sennetts’ video recorder was found in Kenneth Eugene Smith’s home after a search inquiry and then he provided information to the police about Elizabeth’s death.
Kenneth Eugene Smith executed with nitrogen gas
Kenneth Eugene Smith ate his last meal was steak, hash browns, and eggs—eight hours before he was put to death. After this, he got a final visit his wife and sons.
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Smith’s spiritual counsellor, Reverend Jeff Hood, informed the Associated Press that Smith was at peace and accepted his fate with his fear of nitrogen hypoxia execution.
Kenneth’s pulse stopped at 8:08 p.m., indicating Smith was dead, and the witness room curtain closed at 8:15. After being exposed to nitrogen gas for fifteen minutes, Smith was formally declared dead approximately twenty-five minutes later. Smith died at 8:25 p.m. after being executed.
His last words were said to be, “Tonight, Alabama causes humanity to take a step backwards. Thank you for supporting me. Love all of you.”
