Bio

Frank Basil McFarland was born on October 7, 1963, in the United States. He lived in the Tarrant County area of Texas, including Euless, before his arrest in the Hokanson case.

Murder Story

On February 1, 1988, Frank Basil McFarland was accused of participating in the rape and killing of Terry Lynn Hokanson, a 26-year-old woman who worked as a shoeshine valet at a nightclub in Arlington, Texas. According to the prosecution, McFarland met Hokanson at the club and later left with her and another man, Michael Wilson. Investigators said she was taken to an area near a church parking lot in Hurst, where she was sexually assaulted and stabbed multiple times. Reports described as many as 79 knife wounds.

Although gravely injured, Hokanson was still alive after the attack. She managed to reach an open area where teenagers found her and called for help. She later died from her injuries. McFarland was arrested about one month after the murder. Prosecutors relied on witness testimony, forensic evidence, and statements linking him to the crime. McFarland denied involvement and maintained his innocence throughout the case.

His trial began in Tarrant County in October 1989. On November 13, 1989, a jury convicted him of capital murder. He was formally sentenced to death later that month. Over the following years, McFarland pursued multiple appeals in state and federal courts. One major legal dispute reached the Supreme Court of the United States in McFarland v. Scott (1994), a case involving access to counsel in capital habeas proceedings. Despite continued legal challenges, his conviction and sentence were upheld.

On April 29, 1998, McFarland was executed by lethal injection in Huntsville Unit. In his final statement, he again denied guilt and said he had been wrongfully convicted.