Jessie Hoffman Jr.
Jessie Hoffman Jr. was 46 and had spent more than two decades in custody at the Louisiana State Penitentiary at Angola. His wife, Ilona Hoffman, said he was a good dad, a loyal friend and the most amazing husband, and his attorney, Caroline Tillman, said he was deeply loved, brought light to those around him, and spent nearly three decades proving people can change. The Louisiana Department of Public Safety and Corrections said he was executed by nitrogen gas at Angola on March 18, 2025, the state's first execution in more than a decade, and pronounced dead at about 6:50 p.m.; media witnesses reported that his breathing slowed before he died. His lawyers argued that the method violated his Buddhist religious practice and amounted to cruel and unusual punishment, and the U.S. Supreme Court denied a stay by a 5-4 vote.
Cause of death, as reported: Executed by the state. Objections to the execution: his lawyers argued that nitrogen hypoxia violated his Buddhist faith and the Eighth Amendment, and advocates and his wife called it revenge and criticized the speed of the state's protocol.
Reported by: Louisiana Department of Public Safety and Corrections (the agency that held him); West Feliciana Parish coroner's office (medical examiner or coroner); media witnesses; his attorneys; his wife; Vocal.media (reporters).
Lawsuit: His lawyers challenged the nitrogen gas method in court on religious freedom and Eighth Amendment grounds, and the U.S. Supreme Court denied a last-minute stay by a 5-4 vote.
News reports (8)
- Louisiana Department of Public Safety and Corrections, deaths in 2025 (data file)
- Louisiana conducts its first nitrogen gas execution, ending 15-year death penalty hiatus
- Louisiana death row killer Jessie Hoffman becomes state’s first nitrogen gas execution
- Louisiana carries out first execution in 15 years Tuesday night
- Louisiana executes Jessie Hoffman by nitrogen gas in 1st use of death penalty in 15 years
- Louisiana carries out state's first nitrogen hypoxia execution
- Louisiana executes Jessie Hoffman by nitrogen gas in 1st use of death penalty in 15 years
- Every United States Prisoner Executed 2025