Attorney General Ken Paxton today announced that the Criminal Prosecutions Division of his office, in conjunction with the Anderson County District Attorney’s Office, succeeded in obtaining the death penalty for William Hudson, who was convicted last week of capital murder in Anderson County. Assistant Attorney General Lisa Tanner assisted the prosecution of this case at the request of District Attorney Allyson Mitchell. The trial was moved to Brazos County due to pre-trial publicity.
Hudson’s victims, who ranged in age from 6 to 77, camped in 2015 on a property they purchased from his family. Prosecutors said Hudson killed the six people because he resented the sale of the land. Evidence presented during the trial included security camera footage, along with testimony from the wife of one of the murder victims, who hid from Hudson during the shooting.
“We are grateful on behalf of the victims’ families that justice has been served, and we are thankful that this vicious killer has been removed from society,” Attorney General Paxton said. “Given the brutal nature of the mass murders, anything short of the death penalty would have been disproportionate. I am grateful to the Criminal Prosecutions Division of my office and the Anderson County DA’s office for all of the hard work they put into trying and winning this case.”