Inside Texas Death Row: Lufkin Murderer is Texas Death Row’s Longest Resident

There are 90 inmates on Death Row in Texas. No current prisoner has been on Death Row longer than Harvey Earvin.

On October 26, 2025, Earvin will mark his 48th year on this dubious list—his crime - the slaying of a 75-year-old man outside a gas station in Lufkin, Texas.

Details of the Murder

On December 7, 1976, 18-year-old Harvey Earvin, along with his 15-year-old girlfriend, went to the back of a gas station located on Raguet Street in Lufkin. The pair encountered a 75-year-old employee of the facility, Ertis Brock, who was taking cash bags to his car.

Earvin pointed a 20-gauge shotgun at Brock and ordered him to stop. Earvin, who was wearing an Afro-style wig and fake mustache, would later testify that Brock was reaching for something in his pocket. Thinking it was a gun, Earvin shot the employee in the chest at close range.

Brock, a 37-year veteran of Lufkin Industries, was pronounced deceased.

The suspect ran from the scene, dropping his gun and leaving the cash behind. Both Earvin and his girlfriend were captured a few days later, and each of them confessed to the details of the homicide.

Later, according to a file with the Texas Department of Corrections, Earvin laughed and joked about the murder to friends and cellmates.

READ MORE: 3 of Texas's Most Wanted Fugitives Have Been Captured

The Death Sentence and Appeals

On August 24, 1977, a jury convicted Harvey Earvin of capital murder. The following day, that same jury would deliberate and sentence him to death.

The mandatory appeals process would last through 1979. Earvin's execution date was set for May 14, 1986.

Earvin would file more appeals based upon what he called 'ineffective representation by counsel,' specifically during the penalty stage of the trial. Several appeals were denied, but a stay was granted in the late 1980s, allowing him to pursue additional opportunities through appeals.

What's His Status Now?

Harvey Earvin continues to reside as an inmate in the Polunsky Unit located in West Livingston, Texas. After 1990, it's hard to find anything concerning the status of his appeal, and there is nothing listed for an updated execution date.