Texas man executed for killing Arlington pastor in his church: 'Let's ride, warden'

ARLINGTON, Texas - A man on death row for killing a North Texas pastor was executed Wednesday evening in Huntsville.
Activists called for Governor Greg Abbott to halt the execution but were not successful.
Steven Nelson's Final Words
What we know:
Steven Lawayne Nelson, 37, received a lethal injection and was pronounced dead at 6:50 p.m. at the state penitentiary in Huntsville.
Before the lethal injection was administered, Nelson repeatedly told his wife, who watched through a window a short distance from him, that he loved her and that he was thankful and grateful.
"It is what it is," he said. "I’m not scared. I’m at peace.. Let’s ride, warden."
Steven Nelson convicted of murdering Pastor Clint Dobson
The backstory:
In 2012, Nelson was convicted and sentenced to death for the 2011 murder of Clint Dobson at NorthPointe Baptist Church in Arlington.
Prosecutors said Nelson suffocated the young pastor by putting a plastic bag over his head as he was sitting in his office writing a sermon.
Nelson suffocated Dobson, leaving him dead on the floor.

Pastor Clint Dobson
Nelson also severely beat the church’s secretary before fleeing in her car.
He was captured after going on a shopping spree using the victims’ stolen credit cards.
Blood from both victims was found on a pair of Nelson's shoes, and studs from his belt were found at the church.
During his trial, jurors unanimously agreed that Nelson posed a danger to society and should face the death penalty.
"It is hard for me to fathom that you did what you did for a car and a laptop and a phone," Dobson's father-in-law, Phillip Rozeman, said in a statement after the sentencing. "The world is going to miss a leader. It's sad to know all the people that won't be helped because Clint is not here."
Three days before the murder, Nelson had been released from a court-ordered anger-management program, part of a deal with Dallas County prosecutors after he was arrested for aggravated assault on his girlfriend. He earlier had served time behind bars for a two-year sentence for theft, and spent much of his teen years in juvenile facilities after committing various crimes.
After the sentencing, he was accused of angrily breaking a sprinkler head in his holding cell, which flooded the courtroom.
While awaiting trial, Nelson was indicted in the killing of another jail inmate. He was never tried on that charge after his guilty verdict and death sentence.
Nelson's execution was been delayed before.
The now 37-year-old was set to die by lethal injection in October, but prosecutors filed a motion to delay it until February.
The Fort Worth Star-Telegram reported Nelson’s lawyers asked for more time to develop arguments about the sentencing.
Attempt to stop Steven Nelson's execution
Nelson’s attorneys appealed on claims of bad legal representation at his trial and sentencing, saying this lawyers did little to challenge the alibis of the other men, or present mitigating evidence of a troubled childhood in Oklahoma and Texas. His appeals have been denied by state and federal courts, and the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals denied a stay of execution on Jan. 28. Nelson’s attorneys this week asked the U.S. Supreme Court to intervene and halt his execution, to give them more time to challenge his conviction.
Two activists, Pastor Jeff Hood and Rev. Katheryn Barlow-Williams, dropped off a petition containing 11,000 signatures at the Governor's Reception Room on Tuesday hoping for Gov. Greg Abbott to stop the execution.
What they're saying:
"I think that probably what is appropriate is that he should spend, and he should get a life sentence, and spend most of the rest of his life behind bars," said Pastor Hood.
"Do not avenge the death of the victim of Steven Nelson on the behalf of all pastors, because by far, I think the vast majority of us do not support the death penalty," said Rev. Barlow-Williams.
Texas Executions in 2025
What's next:
Nelson is the state's first execution in 2025.
There are currently three other executions scheduled for this year.
Convicted murderer Richard Tabler is scheduled to be executed on Feb. 13.
Serial killer David Wood is scheduled to be killed on March 13.
Moises Mendoza, who was convicted of strangling a 20-year-old in Collin County, dumping the body in a dirt pit and setting it on fire, is set to be executed on April 23.
By the numbers:
Five men were executed in Texas in 2024.
First execution since Robert Roberson
PREVIOUS COVERAGE: Robert Roberson execution temporarily halted
In a late night ruling, the Texas Supreme Court issued a stay, temporarily preventing the execution of Robert Roberson. Texas House members issued a subpoena for Roberson to testify next week. Roberson would be the first person in the US executed for a murder conviction tied to the diagnosis of shaken baby syndrome.
Nelson's execution would be the first since fellow death row inmate Robert Roberson's execution was delayed at the last minute.
Roberson was scheduled to be executed in Oct. 2024, but the Texas Supreme Court paused his execution after a subpoena from a Texas House committee.
The Supreme Court has since cleared the way for Roberson's execution.
A new execution date has not been set at this time.
Roberson, 58, was convicted of killing his 2-year-old daughter in Palestine, Texas in 2002.
He took her to the emergency room with a high fever, where medical staff determined her condition was consistent with shaken baby syndrome.
Roberson's attorneys have challenged that diagnosis, calling it "junk science."
The Source: Information in this article comes from previous FOX reporting, the Associated Press and the Texas Department of Criminal Justice.