Tennessee, Alabama and Oklahoma are each scheduled to carry out a lethal injection on Thursday, an unusual convergence that would be the first day with three executions in the United States since January 2010. The cases draw attention to a renewed concentration of executions in a small number of states, as well as continuing concerns about lethal-injection procedures.

Tennessee plans to execute Anthony Darrell Hines, 66, for the 1985 murder of motel worker Catherine Jean Jenkins; his case follows a halted execution in May after prolonged difficulty inserting an IV. Alabama is due to execute Jeremy Williams, 42, who pleaded guilty to the 2021 rape and murder of five-year-old Kamarie Holland and has abandoned his appeals. Oklahoma plans to execute Carlos Cuesta-Rodriguez, 70, for the 2003 murder of his girlfriend, Olimpia Fisher; he did not seek clemency, although his lawyers cited brain damage and mental-health conditions.