Guadalupe Esparza was executed Wednesday night. His was the last scheduled execution of the year. (Associated Press)

A small group gathered in the SMU Catholic Center Wednesday night to hold vigil for Guadalupe Esparza, the 13th man to be executed in Texas this year.

The group was made up of members of the Dallas chapter of the Texas Coalition to Abolish the Death Penalty (TCADP).

“As we sit here and contemplate what is happening, I hope that Guadalupe will not die with hate in his heart and he can forgive those who are doing this to him,” Alan Leonard, a member of TCADP, said. “I hope he can find the forgiveness that society did not give to him.”

Esparza was given the death penalty after being convicted of abducting a 7-year-old girl from her San Antonio apartment, sexually assaulting her and strangling her.

“Even when people do horrible things, human beings have intrinsic value that is not dependent on what they do or what they don’t do,” TCADP member Paula Keeth said. “Even if they commit the worst act, there is still some value in them simply because they are human beings.”

Esparza was the last execution scheduled in Texas this year.