Execution Scheduled For Inmate Aaron Gunches, ADCRR #145371
PHOENIX— In accordance with ADCRR Department Order 710, the Arizona Department of Corrections, Rehabilitation and Reentry (ADCRR) today provides information on the upcoming execution of inmate Aaron Gunches, ADCRR #145371.
In 2008, Gunches was convicted of first-degree murder for the 2002 death of Ted Price, for which the trial court sentenced him to death. Upon appeal, on September 1, 2016, the Supreme Court of the State of Arizona affirmed the conviction.
Pursuant to the Arizona Supreme Court’s Warrant of Execution issued on Tuesday, February 11, 2025, the ADCRR will carry out the execution of inmate Aaron Gunches, ADCRR #145371, on March 19, 2025 at Arizona State Prison Complex-Florence.
Recognizing that the resumption of executions brings with it many questions, the ADCRR today provides additional information and background.
METHOD OF EXECUTION
Inmate Aaron Gunches will be put to death by lethal injection.
For details regarding the process and method of executions please refer to ADCRR Department Order 710.
INTERVIEWS WITH AARON GUNCHES
Beginning 35 days prior to the scheduled date of execution, media representatives may request to interview Aaron Gunches. Per Department Order 710 the Department may facilitate up to one non-contact interview by phone for a maximum of thirty minutes, per day, from the day the warrant has been issued up until the day before the execution.
Members of the media wishing to be considered for an opportunity to interview Mr. Gunches may reach out to ADCRR’s media team at [email protected].
The ADCRR will do its best to accommodate requests, however, Mr. Gunches has the right to decline any interview request. Per Department Order 207, the Department has the right to cancel or decline any interview request due to operational and/or security reasons.
EXECUTION CHEMICALS
The Department is confident in both the quality and quantity of its pentobarbital supply. Appropriate testing occurred earlier this year, including a quantitative chemical analysis, which has been provided to Mr. Gunches, confirming a sufficient concentration of pentobarbital in the compounded solution. Additionally, sterility testing on the compounded pentobarbital was completed earlier this year, providing verification of the drug’s beyond use date. The results of this testing have also been provided to Mr. Gunches.
ANONYMITY OF INDIVIDUALS PARTICIPATING IN EXECUTIONS
All ADCRR staff involved in the execution process do so on a strictly voluntary basis. At any point before, during, or after an execution, any team member may decline to participate or participate further without additional notice and explanation or repercussion.
Pursuant to A.R.S. § 13-757(C), the anonymity of any person (see A.R.S. § 1-215(29) and A.R.S. § 13-105(30)), participating in or performing any ancillary function(s) in an execution is paramount. Thus, any information that would identify who those persons are, including information about the sourcing of execution chemicals and any information contained in records that may identify who those persons are, must remain confidential as required by statute and is not subject to disclosure.
Per the protections afforded individuals in A.R.S. § 13-757(C), the Department will continue to forgo releasing and/or distributing any information contained in records that may identify those persons.
The Department has taken the necessary steps to ensure appropriate documentation and record-keeping are in place in compliance with applicable rules and regulations.
MEDIA PARTICIPATION
Members of the media interested in attending this execution as a media witness or press pool member must submit their request to the ADCRR media relations team via email. Information on this process is available on the ADCRR’s death row section of the Department’s website: https://corrections.az.gov/death-row/death-row-information.
To be considered as a media witness, please ensure your request is submitted by February 19, 2025 (at least 28 days before the March 19, 2025 execution date).
Pool members must submit their interest to the ADCRR Media Relations Office by March 12, 2025 at 5 PM to be considered.
A pre-briefing will be held the day before the execution, at ASPC-Florence exclusively for members of the media signed up to be a media witness or a press pool member.
A post-execution briefing will be held shortly after the execution, during which the ADCRR will address the press pool. Additionally, media witnesses will have the opportunity to address the press pool during this post execution briefing with their account of the execution. This briefing may also include comments from the family of Ted Price.
FUTURE EXECUTIONS
At this time, the ADCRR’s focus is on the preparation and execution of Aaron Gunches. If and when a warrant is issued for another individual on death row, the Department will continue to methodically prepare for carrying out that execution.
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