Christopher Newton

Who was Christopher Newton?

Christopher J. Newton was an American criminal whose 2007 execution by the state of Ohio motivated additional discussion about executions by lethal injection.

Christopher Newton received the death penalty for the 2001 aggravated murder of his cellmate, Jason Brewer. At the time of the murder, Newton was imprisoned for attempted aggravated burglary of his father's home. Newton claimed that the burglary was committed only in attempt to return to prison. After two years, he decided that he was ready to die in prison and knew that murdering another inmate would warrant the death penalty. Newton claimed that the motivation for the murder was that he was frustrated by his cellmate's poor chess playing skills and thus chose to beat, strangle, and taste the blood of 27-year-old Brewer.

The court denied Newton's defense funds for neuropsychiatric tests that could have proven severe mental disability. The Constitution of the State of Ohio specifically states that it is cruel and inhumane to execute someone with a severe mental disability.

The controversy surrounding Newton's execution was primarily attributed to the many problems associated with the administration of the injection.