Frank James Coppola

Who was Frank James Coppola?

Frank Joseph Coppola, was a police officer from Portsmouth, Virginia who was convicted and sentenced to death for the 1978 capital murder of Muriel Hatchell, although he maintained his innocence until his execution. According to reports, a co-conspirator with Coppola disguised herself as a flower delivery woman to enter her home, the woman pulled out a pistol from amidst the floral display which she was carrying, allowing cover for Coppola and others to rush into the home.

Hatchell was bound with Venetian blind cords and then had her head slammed repeatedly into the floor, allegedly by Coppola, until she died. The group fled with $3,100 in cash and some rings from the crime scene. On September 26, 1978, Coppola was convicted of first-degree capital murder and sentenced to death in Virginia's electric chair. He waived his appeals and was executed on August 10, 1982, the first person executed in Virginia since the Supreme Court reinstituted capital punishment in 1976. He was also the first person executed in Virginia since 1962.