Execution Report: Raphael Holiday

Raphael Deon Holiday, 36, was executed by lethal injection on 18 November 2015 in Huntsville, Texas for the murder of his daughter and two other girls in their home.

At the beginning of 2000, Holiday lived in Madison County in central Texas with Tami Lynn Wilkerson, their baby, Justice, and Wilkerson's two daughters, Tierra and Jasmine. Wilkerson's log house was in a secluded, wooded area about ten miles from the main highway.

In March, Wilkerson became suspicious that Holiday may have sexually assaulted Tierra. She took the girl to a doctor, who confirmed that she had been sexually assaulted. The doctor referred the case to Child Protective Services. Tierra subsequently told a nurse that her "step daddy" had told her not to tell anyone what had happened to her, because if she did, he would get in a lot of trouble. Wilkerson filed charges against Holiday and obtained a protective order against him, and he moved out.

In the following months, Holiday repeatedly phoned Wilkerson, stating that he wanted to reconcile and see Justice, and threatening to come to the house while the children were at home. Despite the protective order, Wilkerson met with him numerous times between April and August in an effort to deal with his threats and to allow him to see Justice.

In August, Holiday came to the restaurant where Wilkerson was working. She locked herself in the office. Holiday tried to pick the lock on the office door. She called the police, who came and removed him from the premises.

Near the end of August, Holiday phoned Wilkerson and asked for her help in jump-starting his car. When Wilkerson arrived to assist him, he took her keys, told her that he had two guns, and forced her to have sex with him. He then forced her into the car and threatened to crash the car, killing both of them. Wilkerson was able to convince Holiday to let her go. After this incident, she stopped taking his phone calls.

On Tuesday, 5 September 2000, Holiday purchased a gun and practiced shooting it. He arranged for someone to drive him out to Wikerson's house in the country and drop him off. He dressed in black clothing and brought a can of gasoline, cigarette lighters, a gun, and ammunition.

At around 11 p.m., one of Wilkerson's daughters heard glass breaking outside. Wilkerson looked out of the window and saw someone walking toward the house. She called her mother, Beverly Mitchell, who lived about a mile or two away, and asked her to come over. Mitchell and Terry Keller - Tami Wilkerson's uncle - soon arrived at Wilkerson's house. Keller, armed with a shotgun, began walking around the house and yard. Mitchell took Tierra and Jasmine out to her car. She then went back inside the house to get Justice and to dial 9-1-1. As she was holding the phone, Holiday walked in, grabbed the phone out of her hand, and threw it against the wall. Wilkerson came into the room, saw Holiday, and ran out of the house to go for help. Holiday asked Mitchell how she had known to come to the house, because he had cut the phone line. He also said he was going to make Wilkerson pay for taking his baby from him.

Next, Keller walked in. Holiday then put Mitchell in a headlock and held a gun to her head. Keller put his shotgun down, and Holiday retrieved it. According to Keller's trial testimony, Holiday then began "ranting and raving" that he was not "going to take the rap" on the charges filed against him and that he was going to burn the house down "with everyone in it." Holiday then poured gasoline around and on the hood of the car where Tierra and Jasmine were. He repeated that Wilkerson was going to pay for what she had done. He tried to light the gasoline, but was unable to.

Holiday then forced everyone back into the house, shooting his guns as they went. He ordered everyone to sit on the couch. He ordered Mitchell to take him to her house to get some more gasoline. He told Keller that if he left, he would kill Mitchell, and he repeatedly threatened to kill everyone if the police came.

Mitchell and Holiday returned from Mitchell's house with two five-gallon cans of gasoline. Keller was gone, but the girls were still on the couch. Holiday told Mitchell to "soak" the furniture with gas. According to Mitchell's testimony at trial, she poured gas in the living room, the laundry room, and Wilkerson's bedroom, but she did not pour any on or around the couch where the children were. She saw Holiday bend down, and then the fire started. The fire blocked her from going back into the living room for the children. She ran outside. Holiday was standing outside watching the fire. He told Mitchell to get in the car, but she ran into the woods instead.

Holiday left in Mitchell's car as the police were arriving. He rammed a police car and drove off. Meanwhile, Wilkerson had run to the nearest neighbor's house for help. After the neighbors called 9-1-1, Wilkerson began running back down the road to her house. She saw Mitchell's car coming toward her. The car sped up and attempted to run her over, but she escaped into the woods. The car backed up, then sped off, as it was being pursued by a police car.

When Wilkerson arrived back at her house, it was engulfed in flames. Tierra, 7, Jasmine, 5, and Justice, 18 months, were dead.

Police apprehended Holiday after a high-speed chase. He had two cigarette lighters in his pocket when he was arrested. He was treated for burns on his arms, hands, and face. Holiday's pistol and Keller's shotgun were found inside the house.

At the defense's request, Holiday's trial was moved to Walker County.

The defense argued that the gasoline fumes could have been ignited by an electrical fault or a pilot light in a nearby appliance, and therefore reasonable doubt existed as to whether Holiday intended for the fire to be started. The defense cited the fact that Holiday left his weapons in the burning house as evidence that the fire started unexpectedly. The defense also noted that Mitchell's observation that the fire started after Holiday bent down was not included in her original statement to the police.

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