Killer James Broadnax's wife Tiana reveals their 'bittersweet' final moments before she watched his execution
Thomas Bamford
Featured Image Credit: This Morning
British woman Tiana Broadnax has spoken for the first time about the heartbreaking final hours she spent with her husband James before watching him be executed on death row in Texas.
She even included details of the moment she kissed him for the very first time after he died.
James Broadnax, 37, was put to death by lethal injection at the state penitentiary in Huntsville on April 30, after the US Supreme Court refused to intervene in his case. He was pronounced dead at 6.47pm, having maintained his innocence to the very end.
The couple had married just days before his execution, a ceremony conducted entirely behind glass, with no physical contact allowed.
Advert
"We couldn't physically touch," Tiana explained to This Morning.
"Texas likes to uphold the reputation of we're a maximum security prison and death row inmates are meant to be dangerous."
Despite the circumstances, she described the wedding as unexpectedly full. Another couple had cancelled their ceremony at the last minute, meaning Tiana and James were gifted 45 minutes together instead of the planned 20.
"It was very emotional, very bittersweet," she said, "because we still knew what was looming before us." James had prepared his vows in advance, with words focused on life after death together.
Both were in tears. So were many of those around them.
The days that followed were consumed not by newlywed joy but by a frantic last-ditch legal battle. "We couldn't even enjoy to say 'oh we're husband and wife' because it just went straight to legal work, straight back to fighting for his life," Tiana said.
On the day of the execution. Tiana waited in what staff call the hospitality house, a block away from the execution chamber, until she was called in.
She described the long walk through what felt like hospital corridors, guards attempting small talk while her mind was elsewhere.
When the door opened, she saw James strapped to a gurney through a large window.
"I screamed. My brain couldn't comprehend what my eyes were seeing," she said.
"It was a horrendous thing to see. Not just because he's my husband, but in general, nobody should ever have to see anything like that."
She had been determined to be there. What she hadn't anticipated was that he could hear her through the glass.
"We were consistently speaking back and forth throughout the whole thing," she said.
"In a weird way it brought a bit of comfort knowing that we could have our final conversation face to face, but at the same time it just wasn't enough.
After he was declared dead, Tiana was taken to a nearby funeral home, the first time she had ever been in the same room as her husband without glass between them.
She was told she could not touch him below the waist due to the risk of lethal injection fluid leaking. She had 20 minutes with him while his body was still warm. It was also the first time they had ever kissed.
"He was very adamant that if we were going to kiss and touch for the first time, it would be as his wife," she said.
In the weeks since, Tiana has spoken of panic attacks, flashbacks, weight loss and sleepless nights. "I was so intense for two years on this case that once he passed away, the intensity still stayed," she said. "I was consistently waiting for a phone call, consistently waiting for news, and it just all had gone."
James Broadnax had been convicted of the 2008 robbery and shooting of two men outside a recording studio in Garland, Texas.
His cousin Demarius Cummings had also been convicted in connection with the murders but received life without parole rather than death. Earlier this year, Cummings recorded a video confession claiming he had been the one to pull the trigger, a claim backed by the fact that only his DNA was found on the murder weapon. Broadnax's DNA was found on neither the weapon nor the victim.
Travis Scott, T.I and Killer Mike all filed briefs at the Supreme Court in support of his appeal. Every appeal was rejected.
In his final statement, Broadnax asked for forgiveness from the victims' families while standing firm. "No matter what you think about me, Texas got it wrong. I'm innocent, the facts of my case should speak for itself, period."
Tiana says the fight is not over. She intends to complete the bar, campaign against the death penalty, and continue working to clear her husband's name.
"There is enough evidence to clear his name," she said. "The fight hasn't ended yet."