# US prisoner spared execution eight times dies aged 101

https://mins.news/en/item/26123

- BBC News, 2026-08-19 11:22 UTC
- Society
- Original: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c98vr7ql2vdo?at_medium=RSS&at_campaign=rss

> Francis Clifford Smith, who was spared execution eight times, has died aged 101. Convicted of murder in 1950, he spent more than 70 years in prison while maintaining his innocence; the evidence against him was later questioned. He spent his final years in a care facility under supervised parole, highlighting the challenges posed by America’s ageing prison population.