Biting the dust in Arkansas

superbeets · Apr 21, 2017

Killer who beat his neighbor to death becomes the first inmate to be executed in Arkansas since 2005 after turning down a last meal and giving no final words

Convicted killer Ledell Lee, 51, was executed on Thursday night in Arkansas
Arkansas Supreme Court ruling allowed officials to use a lethal injection drug despite manufacturer saying state obtained it under false pretenses
The US Supreme Court voted 5-4 not to stay the execution on Thursday
Lee had always maintained his innocence. His lawyers said he was not evaluated for mental illness, and his previous defenders were unfit
Lee's execution marks the first of eight that Arkansas officials were due to carry out in ten days before their stockpile of a lethal injection drug expires

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superbeets · Apr 21, 2017

The state of Arkansas carried out its first execution in 12 years on Thursday.
Just before midnight, after a series of rejected appeals that reached all the way up to the Supreme Court, 51-year-old Ledell Lee was put to death by lethal injection.
Witnesses, which included an Associated Press reporter, said Lee lost consciousness around a minute after the execution started at 11.44pm. He was pronounced dead at 11:56pm showing no apparent signs of suffering.
Lee declined to offer any final words, though previously told a BBC documentary crew: 'My dying words will always be as it always has been, I am an innocent man.'

superbeets · Apr 21, 2017

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Ledell Lee appears in Pulaski County Circuit Court Tuesday, April 18, 2017, for a hearing in which lawyers argued to stop his execution which is scheduled for Thursday. The Supreme Court only gave a temporary stay

Arkansas Attorney General Leslie Rutledge said that a federal appellate court had 'denied all requests from inmate Ledell Lee for a stay of his execution,' in a Twitter post at shortly after 9pm, noting that a temporary stay issued earlier by the Supreme Court remained in place while more appeals were considered.
But after 11pm, the US Supreme Court issued orders denying the outstanding appeal requests, allowing the execution to proceed.

superbeets · Apr 21, 2017

The judges voted 5-4 against Lee's appeal that carrying out his execution constituted 'cruel and unusual punishment'. Neil Gorsuch, Trump's recent nominee to the court, voted with the majority.
Lee was sentenced to death in 1995 for the murder of Debra Reese, who was beaten to death inside her home.
Reese was struck 36 times with a tire tool her husband had given her for protection.
At the time prosecutors painted Lee as a serial rapist and killer, and accused him of killing several women, ages 17 to 70, according to Arkansas Matters. He was not tried for any of these crimes.
The ACLU and the Innocence Project had asked for more DNA testing to be done.

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This undated photo provided by the Arkansas Department of Correction shows death row inmate Ledell Lee

superbeets · Apr 21, 2017

A prison spokesman said Lee on Thursday declined a last meal and opted instead to receive communion.
His trial was flagrant with a bad defense, say his supporters. Anti-death penalty advocate Sister Helen Prejean wrote on Twitter: 'Just a reminder: The judge at Lee's trial was having an affair with the assistant prosecutor. They later married. Justice?'
His lawyers never brought up that conflict of interest in court, campaigners say.
'Ledell Lee has fetal alcohol syndrome disorder, significant brain damage, and significant intellectual disability,' said the ACLU in a statement.
One of Lee's post-conviction lawyers came drunk to court, says the ACLU. That lawyer was eventually replaced by another.
'It's more or less like I'm living in the twilight zone, like one of those nightmares you can't wake up from,' Lee told the BBC about his time on death row in a recent interview.
'Their main objective is to murder as many people as they can before a drug run out. And you are about to murder an innocent man,' he said. 'I will not say I have come to terms with the state trying to take my life because I have not, nor will I ever come to terms.'
Justices on Thursday also reversed an order by Pulaski County Circuit Judge Alice Gray that halted the use of vecuronium bromide, one of three drugs used in the state's lethal injection process, in any execution.
McKesson Corp., which manufactured the drug, says the state obtained it under false pretenses, adding that it wants nothing to do with executions.
McKesson said it was disappointed in the court's ruling.
'We believe we have done all we can do at this time to recover our product,' the company said in a statement.

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Anti-death penalty supporters Abraham Bonowitz, left, and Randy Gardner wait near their taped off 'protest corral' outside the Varner Unit late Monday, April 17, 2017 near Varner, Arkansas

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Anti-death penalty supporter Randy Gardner, left, wipes away a tear moments after Abraham Bonowitz, left, read on his phone the 11:45pm Supreme Court decision to halt the executions of two prisoners, but Ledell Lee is set to be executed Thursday night

Justices also denied an attempt by makers of midazolam and potassium chloride - the two other drugs in Arkansas' execution plan - to intervene in McKesson's fight over the vecuronium bromide.
The pharmaceutical companies say there is a public health risk if their drugs are diverted for use in executions, and that the state's possession of the drugs violates rules within their distribution networks.
The legal maneuvers frustrated Republican Gov. Asa Hutchinson, who had set the execution schedule less than two months ago. The state's elected prosecutors also criticized the roadblocks to the execution plans.
'Through the manipulation of the judicial system, these men continue to torment the victims' families in seeking, by any means, to avoid their just punishment,' the prosecutors said in a joint statement issued Thursday.
The Arkansas Supreme Court said in a 4-3 ruling that it would not reconsider its decision to stay Johnson's execution. Attorney General Leslie Rutledge's office said she would not appeal that decision to the U.S. Supreme Court.
Lee's execution comes amid an ongoing row over the death penalty in America, as states struggle to acquire the drugs used in 'traditional' triple lethal injections.
Arkansas prosecutors have complained that inmates are filing court papers just to run out the clock on Arkansas' midazolam supply, which expires at the end of April.
Lawyers for those on death row say the executions are being rushed through on a 'conveyor belt'.
Having not carried out an execution since 2005, Arkansas had been due to carry out eight in the space of ten days.
Had all of the executions gone ahead as planned, it would be the first time since the US Supreme Court reinstated the death penalty in 1976 that so many executions have been carried out in such a short space of time, campaigners say.
So far, Lee is the only man to have been put to death.

superbeets · Apr 21, 2017

[h=3]Arkasas's 'conveyor belt of death'[/h]Having not carried out a death sentence since 2005, Arkansas was due to execute eight men in ten days. Those men are:

Bruce Ward, 60 (right). Convicted in 1989 of the murder of 18-year-old gas station clerk Rebecca Doss. He suffers severe mental illness, and campaigners say he does not realize what a death sentence means. He was due to be executed April 17, but his sentence was stayed

Don Davis, 54 (left). Has confessed to the 1990 execution-style killing of Jane Daniels during a home invasion. He claims he is reformed and his sentence should be commuted to life, his lawyers say he is mentally ill. Execution was scheduled for April 17, it was stayed

Ledell Lee, 51 (right). Convicted of the 1993 murder of Debra Reese. Lawyers argue one of his defenders had a substance abuse issue, and another gave up his licence due to mental health issues. He maintained his innocence. He was put to death at 11.44pm on Thursday, after multiple appeals were denied

Stacey Johnson, 40 (left). Convicted of the murder of Carol Heath during a 1993 home invasion while her young children were in the house. His lawyers argue new DNA techniques will acquit him. Due to be executed April 20 alongside Lee, his sentence was stayed

Jack Jones, 52 (right). Convicted in 1995 of the rape and murder of Mary Phillips during a robbery, and the attempted murder of her 11-year-old daughter. He has claimed clemency, but says he did it only to show solidarity with his fellow inmates. He is due to be executed on April 24

Marcel Williams, 46 (left). Convicted in 1994 for the rape and murder of Stacy Errickson who was abducted from a gas station. He had his sentence overturned in 2007, but that was quashed by an appeals court on a technicality. He is due to be executed on April 24

Kenneth Williams, 38 (right). Initially sentenced to life for the murder of Dominique Hurd, when he taunted the victim's family. He later escaped from jail and killed a warden, for which he was given the death penalty. He has since found God and confessed to a third murder. He claims to be reformed. He is due to be executed on April 27

Jason McGehee, 40 (left). Convicted of the murder of 15-year-old John Melbourne in 1996, after Melbourne gave police the names of men involved in a drug ring. McGehee was one of several men to beat Melbourne, but was the one found guilty of murder. Due to be executed April 27, his sentence has been stayed

superbeets · Apr 21, 2017

superbeets · Apr 24, 2017

[h=2]Killer tells the woman who saw him rape and murder her mother 22 years ago 'I'm sorry' in sickening plea for forgiveness as Arkansas puts him to death in America's first double execution in 17 years[/h]

Arkansas has executed the first of two death row members as part of Monday night's double lethal injection. Jack Jones (left) was pronounced dead at 7.20pm Central at the Cummins Unit for the 1995 rape and murder of Mary Phillips (center), after the Supreme Court denied his final request for a stay. At the end of a two-minute final statement, his last words were, 'I'm sorry'. '[I hope] over time you can learn who I really am and I am not a monster,' Jones said to Phillips' daughter, Lacy, who was injured during the attack. Marcel Williams (right) is set to die later on Monday night. It is the first double-execution in the nation since 2000. Jones was sentenced to death for the 1995 attack and the brutal beating of then 11-year-old Lacy. He strangled the mother with the cord to a coffee pot. In a letter earlier this month, Jones said he was ready to be killed by the state. Williams was sent to death row for the 1994 rape and killing of 22-year-old Stacy Errickson, whom he kidnapped from a gas station in central Arkansas. Authorities said Williams abducted and raped two other women in the days before he was arrested in Errickson's death. Williams admitted responsibility to the state Parole Board last month. 'I wish I could take it back, but I can't,' Williams told the board.

superbeets · Apr 24, 2017

[h=1]'I'm not a monster': Killer tells the woman who saw him rape and murder her mother 22 years ago 'I'm sorry' in sickening plea for forgiveness as he is put to death in America's first double execution in 17 years[/h]

Jack H. Jones, Jr was pronounced dead at 7.20pm Central on Monday
His execution lasted 14 minutes and was the first of the US's first scheduled double-execution since 2000
Jones was sentenced to death for the 1995 rape and murder of Mary Phillips and the brutal beating her then-11-year-old daughter, Lacy
Arkansas is racing to complete executions before lethal injection drugs expire
Marcel Williams was set to die later Monday night but a stay has been issued citing inhumane procedures in Jones' execution
Williams would be the third of eight originally scheduled to be put to death before April 30
The last state to put more than one inmate to death on the same day was Texas, which executed two killers in August 2000

superbeets · Apr 24, 2017

Arkansas has executed the first of two death row members as part of Monday night's scheduled double lethal injection.
Jack H. Jones, Jr, 52, was pronounced dead at 7.20pm Central at the Cummins Unit in Lincoln County, Arkansas for the 1995 rape and murder of Mary Phillips, after the Supreme Court denied his final request for a stay. At the end of a two-minute final statement, his last words were, 'I'm sorry.'
'I hope over time you can learn who I really am and I am not a monster,' Jones said to Phillips' daughter, Lacy, who was injured during the attack.
Marcel Williams, 46, was set to die later on Monday night, but a stay was issued approximately an hour after Jones' death citing in humane procedures in his execution.
If allowed to move forward, this would be the first double-execution in the nation since 2000. Arkansas in attempting to carry out several executions before its supply of midazolam, a drug used for lethal injections, expires on April 30.

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Jack Jones (L) was put to death at the Cummins Unit after the Supreme Court denied his final request for a stay; Marcel Williams (R) is set to die later on Monday night

A one-line order issued by US Disctric Judge Kristine Baker in Little Rock, Arkansas stayed the execution of Williams until 8.30pm Central or until she releases another order, whichever is later, as reported by KARK.
Jones was pronounced dead about 14 minutes after the procedure began, according to ABC. There were about 25 people in the room to witness his death, according to KARK reporter Jessi Turnure.
Jones was sentenced to death for the 1995 attack and the brutal beating of then 11-year-old Lacy. He strangled the mother with the cord to a coffee pot.
The murder was first called in as a double-homicide, as recalled by the three men who helped put Jones on death row, according to THV11.

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Jones was sentenced to death for the 1995 rape and murder of Mary Phillips (pictured) and the brutal beating of her then 11-year-old daughter, Lacy

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A photo of Jones' murder victim, Mary Phillips, is seen here

'If Lacy had not survived and if Lacy had actually died as Jack Jones, Jr told us he thought he'd done, I'm not sure we would have caught [him],' Chris Raff, the former prosecutor for the 17th Judicial District said.
'It's amazing that Lacy survived it, but she was key.'
Bill Lindsey, who at the time was photographing the crime scene, is the one who noticed Lacy was still alive.
When authorities arrived to the site of the murder of Phillips, Lacy's lifeless body was in a closet, tied to a chair.
'I was doing the photographs and at the time I thought she was deceased,' the former Chief Investigator for the White County Sheriff's Office said.
'That's what I had been told. And when I took the picture with the flash, I saw her look up with one eye.'
JR Howard, then an investigator for the Arkansas State Police, said it was Lacy's description that immediately tipped off Lindsey as to who the killer was.
'She told Bill that he had a tattoo around his eye,' Howard said.
'There were some Bald Knob officers present and that rang a bell with them. They knew immediately who that was.'
Officers then brought in Jones and he confessed to the rape, murder and attack.

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Jones apologized to Lacy, daughter of Marry Phillips, in his last spoken words

Jones' last spoken words were as follows, according to a transcript provided by KATV:
'Well I just want to let the James family and Lacy [know] how sorry I am. I can't believe I did something to her. I tried to be respectful from the time I took and become a better person. I hope I did better.
'I hope over time you could learn who I really am and I am not a monster. There was a reason why those things happened that day. I am so sorry Lacy. Try to understand I love you like my child.'

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Jones also provided this written statement, to be read out loud by his attorney

Jones also gave a handwritten statement to his attorney to be read, which was titled at the top, 'Statement of Jack Jones.'
'I want people to know that when I came to prison I made up my mind that I would be a better person when I left than when I came in,' it read.
'I had no doubt in my mind that I would make every effort to do this. I'd like to think that I've accomplished this.
'I made every effort to be a good person - I practiced Buddhism and studied physics. I met the right people and did the right things.
'There are no words that would fully express my remorse for the pain that I caused.'

superbeets · Apr 24, 2017

Jones was chosen as one of the eight death row inmates initially scheduled to die this month partly due to the brutal nature of his crimes, Governor Asa Hutchinson and Attorney General Leslie Ruttledge told TVH11.
In a letter earlier this month, Jones said he was ready to be killed by the state.
'I forgive my executioners; somebody has to do it,' wrote Jones, who had a leg amputated in prison because of diabetes and uses a wheelchair.
The letter, which his attorney read aloud at his clemency hearing, went on to say: 'I shall not ask to be forgiven, for I haven't the right.'
Williams was sent to death row for the 1994 rape and killing of 22-year-old Stacy Errickson, whom he kidnapped from a gas station in central Arkansas.

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This handout photo made available by the Arkansas Department of Corrections shows undated file photos provided on April 14 of Arkansas death row inmates who are or were scheduled to be executed by lethal injection before the end of the month and before the expiration date for one of the drugs that will be used

Authorities said Williams abducted and raped two other women in the days before he was arrested in Errickson's death. Williams admitted responsibility to the state Parole Board last month.
'I wish I could take it back, but I can't,' Williams told the board.
Two federal judges ruled against the inmates in separate cases on Sunday.
One denied a stay of execution to Williams, saying that the 8th Circuit Court of Appeals has jurisdiction in the case.
Another federal judge denied the inmates' request for changes to the rules for witnesses to view the executions.
Arkansas is rushing the executions of death row inmates through before their lethal injection drugs expire.
Jones is the second inmate to be executed by Arkansas in April and Williams will be the third.
The state executed Ledell Lee last week in the state's first use of capital punishment since 2005.
Hutchinson originally scheduled four double executions over an 11-day period in April.
The eight executions would have been the most by a state in such a short period since the US Supreme Court reinstated the death penalty in 1976.
Courts have blocked four of the eight scheduled executions.
The last state to put more than one inmate to death on the same day was Texas, which executed two killers in August 2000.
Before Jones was executed, he ate a last meal of of fried chicken, potato logs with tartar sauce, beef jerky bites, three candy bars, a chocolate milkshake and fruit punch.
William's last meal consisted of fried chicken, banana pudding, nachos, two sodas and potato logs with ketchup.

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Protesters gather outside the state Capitol building on April 14 in Little Rock, Arkansas, to voice their opposition to Arkansas' upcoming executions

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superbeets · Apr 24, 2017

Why lethal injection? Rope never expires.

roadreeler57 · Apr 25, 2017

superbeets said:
Why lethal injection? Rope never expires.

The judge calling for a return to the guillotine

Provocative Judge Alex Kozinski says executions should be brutal. So why did he save a mom from death row, even though he admits she may be guilty?
http://www.cbsnews.com/news/the-judge-calling-for-a-return-to-the-guillotine/
Or. http://www.cbsnews.com/news/judge-alex-kozinski-advice-for-president-trump/

roadreeler57 · Apr 25, 2017

roadreeler57 said:
The judge calling for a return to the guillotine

Provocative Judge Alex Kozinski says executions should be brutal. So why did he save a mom from death row, even though he admits she may be guilty?
http://www.cbsnews.com/news/the-judge-calling-for-a-return-to-the-guillotine/
Or. http://www.cbsnews.com/news/judge-alex-kozinski-advice-for-president-trump/