A statement on the execution of Stephen Cory Bryant

A Statement on the Execution of Stephen Bryant

On November 14, 2025, the state of South Carolina executed Stephen Bryant. His execution marks the fifth execution this year, the 50th execution in the state since 1976, the third execution by firing squad in less than a year. South Carolina is now tied with Utah for the most firing squad executions since 1976.

A Statement from Executive Director, Rev. Hillary Taylor:

"Tonight, the state of South Carolina executed another man, Stephen Bryant, in our society’s name by firing squad. A man who, like other people executed in South Carolina these last 15 months, was a victim of other peoples’ violence long before he committed violence against others. In doing so, our state exposed lawyers, corrections officers, victim family members, and members of our press corps to the traumatic and bloody experience of witnessing gun violence. May God have mercy on our souls. 

Our opposition to Stephen’s execution does not mean we shrug our shoulders to the crimes which he committed. We hold the memories of Clifton Dale Gainey, Willard “TJ” Tietjen Jr., and Christopher Burgess in our hearts tonight, as well as their families and community members. Nobody should have to experience the traumatic and gruesome violence they did. We can imagine the peace that 20 years of these death penalty trials has robbed them of, and we hope they receive every support for their healing after today’s execution. 

Since this execution date was scheduled, most people have only heard about the violence Stephen Bryant did to others, but not the violence he himself experienced. This is because Stephen asked us to have a more muted advocacy campaign. Now that the state has killed him by firing squad, I want to take this moment to rehumanize Stephen and to speak about his trauma very plainly. When I hear his story, I picture the story in Mark’s gospel, chapter 5, where Jesus encounters a man tortured by a Legion of demons, chained among tombs, howling for help. Stephen suffered brain damage from fetal alcohol exposure, a condition that made him increasingly vulnerable to irresponsible adults in his life. He experienced horrific sexual abuse from close family members and other community members for years…people who normally take a vow of sacred trust to protect children, but instead violated Stephen. Before he committed violence, he begged family members for help. They called law enforcement, who gave them the number to a crisis hotline. Stephen then went to the local YWCA and to his probation officer, begging for help. Both referred him to a local mental health provider, but he was turned away because he couldn’t pay the $75 counseling fee. Imagine if this was your nephew, your grandchild, your neighbor. 

Would you have helped him? Would you be like Jesus in Mark’s gospel who saw the young man howling and chained among the dead, and help him cast out his Legion of demons? Or would you be like the townspeople in scripture and condemn him to die, chained forever to his terrors?

Mr. Bryant is not the only person who was sentenced to death row because our society did not take care of him, and as long as we have the death penalty, he will not be the last. While South Carolina is in a three-way tie with Texas and Alabama for the second most executing state in the country, it has the fewest mental health treatment centers in the United States and is near the bottom when it comes to quality of care. Over 2 million South Carolinians live in under-resourced areas when it comes to mental health first aid. As a former pastor in a rural county, I have lived in these spaces: I know what it is like to have community members suffering from severe mental illness and have no resources to help them when they call for help.

Instead of punishing people for the abuse they incurred at the hands of adults who were never held accountable for their crimes, what would it look like for the state of South Carolina to take victims of violence seriously? We may never know. As long as we have the death penalty, we will continue to be a state that refuses to solve the problem of violence. 

Before Stephen’s execution, we approached him about our "In Lieu of Violence Initiative." In memorials, the phrase “In Lieu of Flowers” encourages donations to a cause that honors a deceased person. Our “In Lieu of Violence” Initiative applies this concept to individuals on South Carolina’s Death Row—transforming passive mourning and vigil into meaningful change—offering a vision where justice is rooted in prevention rather than retribution. For the next week, with Stephen’s input and consent, SCADP is fundraising for a children’s advocacy center in our state in lieu of violence. If you would like to donate to this fund, please go to www.scadp.org and

click on the yellow button on the front page that says “In Lieu of Violence.” We are more than the worst thing we’ve ever done, and we are more than the worst thing that’s ever happened to us. SCADP hopes this initiative will help South Carolinians understand Stephen’s desire to make sure what happened to him does not happen to other children. ”