A tragic and senseless crime has finally come to an end with the execution of Orlando Cordia Hall for the kidnapping and murder of 16-year-old Lisa Rene in Arlington, Texas, in 1994.
Lisa Rene, an honor roll student with dreams of becoming a doctor, was kidnapped at gunpoint from her home by Hall and his accomplices, who believed she had stolen their money. Despite having no role in the drug transaction, Rene was subjected to unimaginable torture and abuse at the hands of Hall and his accomplices.
After a failed drug transaction involving $4,700, Hall and his accomplices drove to the Arlington home of a man they believed had stolen their money. Rene refused to let them inside, but Hall and his accomplices broke into the apartment and kidnapped her at gunpoint. In the assailants’ car, Hall raped her and forced her to perform oral sex on him. Hall’s accomplices subsequently drove her to a motel in Arkansas, where they tied her to a chair and repeatedly raped her.
Hall arrived at the motel room the next morning, took Rene into the bathroom for 15 to 20 minutes, and emerged to announce that ‘she knew too much.’ That night, Hall and his accomplices took her to a park where Hall and another accomplice had dug a grave that afternoon, but they could not find the grave site in the dark. The next morning, they returned to the park with Rene. At the grave site, Hall placed a sheet over Rene’s head and hit her in the head with a shovel. Rene screamed and tried to run away, but the men tackled her and took turns beating her with the shovel.
After soaking her with gasoline, they dragged her into the grave and buried her alive. Hall’s crimes are a stark reminder of the horrors that can be perpetrated by individuals who are driven by greed and a lack of empathy. His conviction and sentence serve as a reminder that justice will be served, no matter how long it takes.
In 1996, a federal jury found Hall guilty of kidnapping resulting in death, and unanimously recommended a death sentence, which the court imposed. His convictions and sentence were affirmed on appeal, and his requests for collateral relief were rejected by every court that considered them.
Today, Orlando Cordia Hall was executed at U.S. Penitentiary Terre Haute in accordance with the capital sentence unanimously recommended by a federal jury and imposed by the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas in 1996. Hall was pronounced dead at 11:47 p.m. EST.
The case serves as a reminder of the importance of holding those who commit heinous crimes accountable for their actions. Orlando Cordia Hall’s execution brings closure to the family of Lisa Rene, and serves as a reminder that justice will be served, no matter how long it takes.
The exact criminal charges against Hall were kidnapping resulting in death. The city and state where the crime took place were Arlington, Texas. The exact date of the crime was September 1994. The sentence or outcome was death by execution. The dollar amount involved in the failed drug transaction was $4,700.
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Key Facts
- State: Texas
- Category: Violent Crime|Sex Crimes|Kidnapping
- Source: DOJ Press Release â†â€â€
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