Ronald Joseph Sonnier was a convicted murderer who gained national attention for his case. In 2006, Sonnier was convicted of multiple counts of murder in the 1991 slayings of two Texas Department of Corrections officers, Daniel Nagle and Michael Smith. The gruesome killings occurred on January 24, 1993, in Galveston, Texas.
Sonnier, a 27-year-old inmate at the time, was put on a bus to be transferred to another prison when he turned the vehicle over, killing Nagle, the driver. He then shot and killed Smith, a fellow corrections officer, before escaping. The subsequent manhunt led to Sonnier’s eventual capture and conviction.
The case was highly publicized due to the brutality of the crimes and Sonnier’s subsequent escape and recapture. Sonnier was found guilty in the 2006 federal trial and sentenced to death. On August 25, 2005, he was executed in Texas’s Huntsville State Penitentiary for the murders of Nagle and Smith.
Key Facts
- Case: Sonnier
- Court: TXWD Federal District
- Category: Violent Crime
- Source: Federal Court Records
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