Tate execution set for Jan. 31
The Georgia Department of Corrections has set a Jan. 31 execution date for Nicholas Cody Tate, who killed a Paulding County woman and her daughter in 2001.
Tate is to be put to death by lethal injection at 7:00 p.m. at the Georgia Diagnostic and Classification Prison in Jackson. Tate was sentenced to death for fatally shooting Chrissie Williams in the head and killing her 3-year-old daughter Katelyn by slitting her throat.
Tate pleaded guilty to the murders in 2005 and waived a trial by jury. After a sentencing hearing, the trial judge sentenced Tate to death. Tate's case is highly unusual in that he has not challenged his conviction and sentence through a petition of habeas corpus in either state or federal court.
About the Author
Bill Rankin has been an AJC reporter for more than 30 years. His father, Jim Rankin, worked as an editor for the newspaper for 26 years, retiring in 1986. Bill has primarily covered the state’s court system, doing all he can do to keep the scales of justice on an even keel. Since 2015, he has been the host of the newspaper’s Breakdown podcast.
