Execution Date Set for Gadsden Man Convicted in 1991 Double Murder

Michael Shannon Taylor was sentenced to death for the murders of Ivan and Lucille Moore during a robbery of their home in Gadsden. (Alabama Department of Corrections)

T.L. Sullivan | The Weekly Ledger News | Area News | Monday, August 31, 2026

MONTGOMERY, Ala. — Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey has set a November execution date for a death row inmate convicted in the 1991 murders of a Gadsden couple.

Michael Shannon Taylor, 54, is scheduled to be executed by lethal injection during a 30-hour window beginning at midnight Thursday, Nov. 5, and ending at 6 a.m. Friday, Nov. 6.

Taylor was convicted of the capital murders of Ivan Ernest Moore and his wife, Lucille Moore, who were killed at their Gadsden home on Nov. 4, 1991.

According to Alabama court records, Taylor was 19 years old and absent without leave from the U.S. Navy when he returned to his hometown of Gadsden. Taylor knew the Moores and went to their home, where he asked to use their telephone. Court records state that Ivan Moore offered Taylor a glass of water and a doughnut before Taylor later attacked the couple.

Taylor was ultimately convicted of three counts of capital murder. Two counts were based on the murders occurring during the course of a robbery, while a third involved the killing of two or more people as part of one scheme or course of conduct. A jury unanimously recommended the death penalty, and the trial court formally sentenced Taylor to death in May 1993.

The Alabama Supreme Court issued an order June 4 authorizing the state to carry out Taylor’s death sentence and directing the governor to establish the execution time frame.

In an Aug. 31 letter to Alabama Department of Corrections Commissioner Greg Lovelace, Ivey established the 30-hour execution window and said she currently has no plans to grant clemency in the case. The governor noted, however, that she retains her constitutional authority to issue a reprieve or commutation before the sentence is carried out.

Taylor could become the third person executed in Alabama during 2026 if the currently scheduled executions are carried out.

The Weekly Ledger News will continue to follow developments in the case as the November execution date approaches.

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