Daryl Renard Atkins was born on November 6, 1977. He grew up in York County, Virginia. By the age of 18, Atkins had already developed an extensive criminal record, including multiple convictions for robbery, larceny, and burglary.

On August 16, 1996, Daryl Atkins and William Jones spent the day drinking and smoking marijuana. Later that night, they went to a convenience store to buy more beer but did not have enough money. Atkins decided to panhandle. At around 11:30 p.m., Eric Nesbitt entered the store. When Nesbitt left, Atkins hijacked his truck at gunpoint. Jones drove while Atkins took Nesbitt hostage.

Atkins and Jones stole $60 from Nesbitt's wallet and then forced him to withdraw $200 from a local bank's drive-through ATM. After this, they drove to a secluded area where they discussed what to do with Nesbitt. Instead of just tying him up and leaving him, Atkins ordered Nesbitt out of the truck and shot him to death, inflicting eight bullet wounds.

Both men were arrested after the crime. William Jones testified against Atkins, leading to Atkins being convicted of capital murder. He was sentenced to death. However, the Virginia Supreme Court reversed the death sentence because of an issue with the sentencing verdict form.

During sentencing, the Commonwealth of Virginia sought the death penalty, citing statutory aggravating factors: future dangerousness and the vileness of the crime. Defense psychologist Evan Nelson testified that Atkins had an IQ of 59, suggesting intellectual disability. Despite this, Atkins was sentenced to death in 1998.

The Virginia Supreme Court overturned the sentence due to a jury form error and remanded the case for a new sentencing hearing. At the second hearing, a prosecution expert, Dr. Stanton Samenow, evaluated Atkins using outdated methodologies and concluded he was of average or above-average intelligence. Again, the jury sentenced Atkins to death, a sentence upheld by the Virginia Supreme Court.

However, in light of growing national concern over executing individuals with intellectual disabilities, the U.S. Supreme Court granted certiorari in the case. In Atkins v. Virginia, 536 U.S. 304 (2002), the Court ruled 6–3 that executing individuals with intellectual disabilities violated the Eighth Amendment ban on cruel and unusual punishment. Although the Court found a national consensus against such executions, it left the definition of intellectual disability up to individual states.

Following the ruling, the case returned to Virginia for further evaluation. Later IQ tests placed Atkins above the threshold of 70, which Virginia used to define intellectual disability. Prosecutors argued these results showed Atkins had never been intellectually disabled, and further pointed to his behavior during the crime

In 2005, a Virginia jury found Atkins was not mentally retarded. Subsequently, his execution was scheduled for December 2005, but this was delayed.In January 2008, new allegations of prosecutorial misconduct surfaced, potentially warranting a new trial. Judge Prentis Smiley acknowledged misconduct occurred but, rather than overturning the conviction, commuted Atkins’s death sentence to life imprisonment, citing the overwhelming evidence of his guilt. The Virginia Supreme Court upheld Smiley’s decision in 2009, affirming that neither a writ of mandamus nor prohibition could overturn the judge’s ruling.