There is limited public information about the early life of Franklin Thomas, who, along with his brother David Thomas, was executed in 1995 by the government of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines. His date of birth, upbringing, personal background, and occupation before the murder conviction are not detailed in court records or press coverage.

Franklin’s name entered public discourse during the early 1990s, when both he and his brother were tried and sentenced to death for murder. The specifics of the crime, including the identity of the victim(s) and the nature of the attack, have not been disclosed in available sources.

Franklin Thomas, along with his brother David Thomas, was convicted of murder in Saint Vincent and the Grenadines and received a mandatory death sentence under local law. The case went through the domestic appeal process, but their final legal recourse, an appeal to the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council (JCPC) in London, was cut short.

On Friday, February 9, 1995, the Thomas brothers were suddenly informed that their execution had been scheduled for the following Monday, February 13. This gave them only three days to act, which made it practically impossible to file an appeal to the JCPC, the highest court of appeal for SVG and many Commonwealth nations.

Despite still having a legal right to appeal, the state proceeded with a triple hanging on February 13, 1995, executing Franklin Thomas, David Thomas, and Douglas Hamlet on the same morning. The lack of notice, absence of final appeals, and swiftness of the executions shocked the public and drew condemnation from international observers.

Amnesty International was only informed of the scheduled hangings 36 hours beforehand and strongly criticized the government afterward, stating that "the secrecy and speed with which these executions have been carried out may have denied the prisoners justice."