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Six killers were executed in December 2000.
They had murdered at least 17 people.
Six killers were issued stays of execution in December
2000. They
have murdered at least 12 people.
| Date
of scheduled execution |
State |
Victim name |
Inmate name |
Status |
|
December 5, 2000 |
Texas |
April Marie Wilson, 7 |
Garry Miller |
executed |
| Garry Miller was sentenced to die
for the November 11, 1988 kidnapping, rape and murder of 7-year-old
April Marie Wilson of Merkel, Texas. April was spending the night at
a home that Miller shared with another man and a female co-worker of
April's mom. Miller told the police that he returned home and found
April sleeping on the couch. He woke her up and took her "for a
ride". He drove to a remote area where he raped her, choked her
and then bludgeoned her to death. Her body was found by two hunters
later that day. Miller confessed to April's murder. The pickup
truck tailgate where 7-year-old April Marie Wilson was raped and murdered
served as a lectern at the trial of her accused killer. An 8-by-10
photograph of her was displayed on the prosecution table. "She was
the prettiest little thing," retired Jones County District Attorney
Jack Willingham recalled. "I set her picture up on the counsel table
as a witness that couldn't be there." Garry Dean Miller was convicted
of choking and fatally bludgeoning her. "I don't take any pride
in this," said Willingham, who retired four years ago. "But it
was just a terrible thing. You just can't imagine a human being can do
that to a child." "I don't have too much mercy for these
guys," said Gary Brown, who succeeded Willingham as district attorney
in Jones County, north of Abilene, and responded to Miller's appeals.
"They're dying a better way than their victim. That's my attitude. It's too bad you can't walk in and one day they don't know about and
just say: 'OK. Bye!' And just kill them - just like they did their
victim. I've got no mercy for this guy. There's no reason for
this stuff, for what he did to her." Miller, who worked as a bartender and laborer, was believed
to have been drinking heavily when he returned to his girlfriend's house
in Merkel, about 15 miles west of Abilene, in the early morning hours of
Nov. 11, 1988. April Wilson was the girlfriend's cousin, was staying at
her house and was asleep on a couch when Miller arrived. In a confession
to authorities, Miller said he woke up the girl and asked if she wanted to
go for a ride. In a cotton field to the north in Jones County, he raped
her on the pickup tailgate, then choked her and hit her with an object he
picked up from the ground. "He said she began to cry and
holler," Willingham said. "This little girl ... he held her on
the tailgate of his pickup and raped her. I remember him saying: 'I
told her it wouldn't hurt long.' I won't ever forget, I used it in
my closing argument," Willingham added. Miller said he used coat
hangers to drag the girl's body through some prickly pear and left her
corpse in some brush. When Miller's girlfriend awoke the next morning and
April was gone, police were notified and a search began with Miller among
the searchers. Her body was found by quail hunters and Miller was tied to
her death. Blood evidence from the tailgate was used against him.
"He'd been drinking tequila," Brown said. "God knows what
he shoved down his throat that night. Too bad it wasn't a .357 slug."
Miller, who declined repeated requests for interviews with reporters,
ordered his attorneys to not pursue appeals once the U.S. Supreme Court
refused to review his case. |
| Date
of scheduled execution |
State |
Victim name |
Inmate name |
Status |
|
December 5, 2000 |
Pennsylvania |
Donovan “George” Aitken |
Andre Thompson |
stayed |
|
On February 1, 1992, Francisco Forbes drove to the victim Donovan "George"
Aitken's apartment, intending to drive George to work. Forbes performed
several services for George, including helping to collect revenues from
George’s marijuana business. Upon Forbes exiting his car, Thompson
approached Forbes and asked for a cigarette. After indicating that he did
not smoke, Forbes proceeded to cross the street and enter George’s apartment
building. Approximately fifteen minutes later, Forbes, George and George’s
girlfriend exited the apartment building. As Forbes began crossing the
street towards his car, he observed Thompson pull out a handgun and begin
firing. Forbes initially feared he had been shot but, after realizing he was
mistaken, ducked and ran toward the apartment building hoping to
escape. George was unable to escape and fell to the ground after being
shot. Forbes then watched as Thompson approached George and shot him several
more times while on the ground. Forensic evidence established that the
gunshot wounds caused George’s death. In November of 1992, Thompson admitted
to Norman Price that he was responsible for murdering George. He further
told Price that Richard Martin, the brother of George’s girlfriend, had paid
him to commit the murder because Martin wanted to take over George’s drug
business. Moreover, as part of the agreement, following the murder Thompson
would be allowed to run one of George’s variety stores from which he had
sold marijuana. On December 22, 1992, two police detectives arrested
Thompson at the variety store. After arriving at the police station, the
police conducted a thorough pat-down search of Thompson and found a bag
containing thirty-three vials of crack cocaine. After reading Thompson his
Miranda warnings, the police questioned him. Although Thompson initially
denied any involvement in the murder, he eventually admitted his
culpability. At first, he refused to sign a written confession acknowledging
his statement but, after speaking with his mother, Thompson agreed to sign
the statement admitting that he shot George three to four times in exchange
for marijuana from Martin, which Thompson subsequently sold for $1,100. The
next day, while awaiting preliminary arraignment in a holding cell with
other prisoners, Thompson did not respond when his name was called. A police
officer then checked the armbands of all the prisoners awaiting arraignment
and discovered that one prisoner, later identified as Ty Fuller, did not
have an armband. The police officer then discovered that Thompson, who was
still in the cell, had taken Fuller’s armband and replaced his own with
it. Fuller was facing only theft charges and was due to be released from
jail following his arraignment. After being confronted by the officer,
Thompson took his own armband out of his pocket. *There are still appeals
pending and this execution is not likely to take place on this date. |
| Date
of scheduled execution |
State |
Victim name |
Inmate name |
Status |
|
December 6, 2000 |
Virginia |
James Nathaniel Randolph, 35
Daphne Jones, 29
Nicole Jones, 9
David Jones, 4
Robert Jones, 3 |
Christopher Goins |
executed |
| A Dec. 6 execution date was set
for Christopher C. Goins, who killed 5 people in a Gilpin Court apartment
in October 1994. The 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals rejected Goins'
appeal on Aug. 31, and Richmond Circuit Judge Thomas N. Nance set the date
in a conference call with Assistant Attorney General Katherine P. Baldwin,
defense attorneys Frank Salvato and Robert Stanley Powell from Northern
Virginia, and city Commonwealth's Attorney David M. Hicks. Hicks and
Deputy Commonwealth's Attorney Claire G. Cardwell prosecuted Goins.
Salvato acknowledged in the call that he had no legal grounds to object to
the date. A last-minute stay from the U.S. Supreme Court or clemency from
Gov. Jim Gilmore appear to be the only possible obstacles to Goins'
execution. Goins, 25, was convicted of killing James Nathaniel Randolph
Jr., 35; Daphne Jones, 29; and 3 of Jones' children - Nicole, 9; David, 4;
and Robert, 3. He also was convicted of maliciously wounding Jones' other
2 children, Tamika, who was 14 at the time, and Kenya, her toddler sister.
Tamika also lost the 7-month-old fetus she was carrying at the time of the
shooting. Goins was the father of the fetus, and authorities believe that
was the motive for the shooting. Goins was sentenced to death for
murdering Robert, to life terms in the other 4 deaths and to a total of 40
years for wounding Tamika and Kenya. Tamika testified at Goins' trial in
June 1995 that she heard Goins talking to her mother shortly before the
shooting and then heard a series of shots in 2 rooms before Goins appeared
at her door and shot her 9 times. Goins also shot Kenya in the arm as
Tamika tried to shield her sister, according to Tamika's testimony.
Forensics experts testified that all the bullets and cartridge casings
came from the same firearm, and a cartridge from the same .45-caliber
Glock pistol was found in the apartment of Goins' girlfriend, witnesses
said. |
| Date
of scheduled execution |
State |
Victim name |
Inmate name |
Status |
|
December 6, 2000 |
Texas |
His own father
His own mother
Gerald Walker
Mary Alice Goss, 39
Richard Joseph Cook Jr., 36
Raymond Scott Gregg, 19
Christy Condon, 4 |
Daniel Hittle |
executed |
| Convicted capital murderer Daniel
Joe Hittle, accused of slaying seven people since 1973, was sentenced to
death for murdering a suburban Garland police officer on November 15, 1989.
Hittle was described by witnesses as a man who gleefully killed or
tortured animals and who routinely beat women and children. He was on
parole for the killings of his adoptive parents in Minnesota when he shot
Garland police officer Gerald Walker during a traffic stop. According
to testimony, Hittle returned home after being thrown out of a party at
the house of Mary Goss, 39. At home, he argued with his wife and left
carrying a shotgun. Ten minutes later, Officer Walker stopped Hittle's
pickup for speeding, and the 17-year officer was shot in the chest. Hittle
returned to the Goss house, kicked in the door and opened fire. Killed
were Ms. Goss; Richard Cook Jr., 36; Raymond Gregg, 19; and Ms. Goss'
daughter, Christy Condon, 4. Evidence showed he had to reload his 20-gauge
shotgun to kill the little girl. Police later spotted his fleeing vehicle
and exchanged fire with him until he ran out of ammunition. His shotgun
was linked to all five murders. Among the witnesses was Officer Walker's
widow, Beckie, and Jimmie George, a fellow Garland officer, who said,
"The death of Daniel Hittle will guarantee that no police officer
will ever face the danger of dealing with him again." Police
say Hittle then sped to East Dallas, where he fatally shot Mary Alice
Goss, 39; Richard Joseph Cook Jr., 36; Raymond Scott Gregg, 19; and Goss'
4-year-old daughter Christy Condon. He was convicted of capital
murder in Walker's death. Hittle, who seemed jovial and carefree
throughout the trial, said nothing, merely nodding when State District
Judge Richard Mays pronounced the death sentence. The Dallas County
jury deliberated about an hour. "He had to be stopped from
hurting anyone else," said Hittle's sister, Judy Anderson who lives
in Minnesota. At trial she testified against her brother, describing
the pain she felt when she learned that Hittle killed their parents on
their Minnesota farm in 1973. Anderson also said she felt some
remorse. "This is like a funeral," she said. "He's gone.
And despite everything he's done, he's part of the family." A
17-year veteran of the police department, Walker was the first officer in
Garland, a Dallas suburb, killed in the line of duty. Prosecutors
said that Hittle, who had a loaded 20-gauge shotgun in his car, wanted to
kill the officer because he knew having the weapon would be a violation of
his parole. Hittle was paroled in 1984 after serving 11 years in a
Minnesota prison for the murders of his adoptive parents. Witnesses
testified that for the last two decades, Hittle led a cruel life. He often
beat his wives and children, seemed to take pleasure in killing animals
and had murdered his parents after their dog scratched his truck,
according to testimony. He also often talked of killing police officers
and later bragged about killing his mother and father, witnesses said.
"Obviously a very violent, vicious human
being," said Dallas Assistant District Attorney Toby Shook, one of
the prosecutors in the police killing case. "A poster boy for the
death penalty," added Andy Beach, another of the prosecutors.
"He is the classic sociopath."
After the jury delivered the death sentence, Walker's widow, flanked by
Garland police, said jurors "did what they had to do." But Becky
Walker also said she was concerned that parole laws aren't adequately
protecting Americans. "There are other Hittles running around
out there," she said. |
| Date
of scheduled execution |
State |
Victim name |
Inmate name |
Status |
| December 7, 2000 |
Pennsylvania |
Regina Clark
Austin Hopper, 9 |
John Joseph Koehler Jr. |
stayed |
|
Regina Clark and her nine-year-old son, Austin Hopper, were killed on April
18, 1995, by William Curley, at the urging and insistence of John Joseph
Koehler as part of his training of the young Curley for a future career as a
“hit man.” The bizarre facts regarding the deaths of Regina and Austin, as
testified to by Curley at Koehler’s trial, are as follows. Curley had known
Koehler since he was very young. By August of 1994, Koehler had told Curley
that he was a hit man for the mob. Koehler repeated his claim of being a hit
man many times to Curley. Koehler also spoke to Curley about his entering
the “profession”, promising that Curley could make “six digits” in the
field. Curley, who turned eighteen on August 9, 1994, did not dismiss the
idea out of hand because he “…thought it would be all right, cause I thought
it was going to be more along the lines of people like drug dealers and mob
men, people that would hurt innocent people.” Accordingly, Koehler told
Curley that he would train him for the business. Charline Benefield, with
whom Koehler lived while in Arkansas in late 1994, also testified that
Koehler had told her that he was training Curley to be a hit man. On April
17, 1995, Curley was staying at the home of his friends Melissa Mack and
Ricky Hunsinger. Curley received a message to call Koehler, which he did,
and at that time Koehler told him he was bringing “two packages” to Curley
and asked if he could “deliver them”. Curley agreed. Koehler arrived at the
house at 4:00 a.m. on April 18, 1995, accompanied by Regina and Austin.
Regina and Austin evidently were the “packages” to which Koehler referred,
although Curley did not know that at the time of the telephone conversation.
Koehler apparently met Regina while he was living in Arkansas. According to
the testimony of Kerrien Ramsey, Ramsey also met Koehler in Arkansas, and,
through him met and became friends with Regina, with whom Koehler was
romantically involved. Ramsey accompanied Regina, Austin, and Koehler on the
trip from Arkansas to New Jersey in late February or early March of 1995.
Koehler and Regina had been staying at his mother’s apartment since their
arrival from Arkansas some weeks previously. Ramsey testified at trial that
on April 16 or 17, 1995, while they were in the bedroom of his mother’s
apartment, Koehler showed Ramsey a loaded gun and told her that he would
kill Regina before she left New Jersey to go back to Arkansas. Ramsey
testified that the trip from Arkansas to New Jersey was supposed to have
lasted for only a few days and that she and Regina were anxious to return
home to Arkansas. Curley also testified that in the early morning hours of
April 18, 1995, while Mack, Regina and Austin remained at the house, Curley
and Koehler drove to Lounsberry, New York, where Koehler was to pick up
money wired to him through Western Union. It was on the drive to New York
that Koehler explained that he wanted Curley to kill Regina. At trial Curley
testified that he told Koehler he did not want to do it, but Koehler
insisted that he “had to”, or Koehler would kill Curley. On the drive back
to Pennsylvania, Koehler handed Curley a loaded .22 caliber Baretta to use
for the murder. Also, on the return drive the pair spent approximately an
hour driving around looking for a place to put Regina’s body. They found an
abandoned refrigerator in a dump, which Koehler examined, and then told
Curley to place Regina’s body inside the refrigerator. Curley again told
Koehler that he did not want to kill Regina, to which Koehler replied, “kill
or be killed.” The pair returned to the Mack/Hunsinger house, picked up
Regina and Austin, and then proceeded to Settlers Restaurant. Koehler
entered the restaurant while Curley, Regina and Austin drove off, Regina
having been told they were to pick up a car Koehler needed for the drive
back to her home in Arkansas. In fact, Curley was to go to Stone Jug Road to
kill Regina and Austin. The trio arrived at Stone Jug Road and stopped after
Curley told Regina he had car problems. They got out of the car, and as
Regina was looking for an oil leak, Curley pulled the gun and aimed it at
her. (Regina was unaware of this.) Curley testified that he “couldn’t do
it,” so he put the gun away and returned to Settlers Restaurant. At the
restaurant, while Regina and her son sat in the car, Koehler again told
Curley that he had to find some place to kill Regina. They then decided that
the murder should take place at the house of Janet Schrader. Curley knew and
was friendly with Kirk Schrader, the son of Ms. Schrader. The four drove to
the Schrader home and Curley pulled the car into the garage, the location
that Koehler had told Curley would be a good place to kill Regina and
Austin. While Austin, Regina and Koehler entered the house, Curley remained
alone in the garage. A short time later Koehler returned with Kirk and, in
front of him, suggested possible ways to kill Regina. However, before any
murder took place, Koehler and Curley left the Schrader residence for Wysox,
Pennsylvania, and the parking lot of Citizens Bank. During the drive to
Wysox, Curley again told Koehler that he did not think he could kill Regina.
Koehler’s response was that he had to kill her. After Curley and Koehler
returned to the Schraders’, Curley entered the garage and Koehler went into
the house. When Regina entered the garage, Curley shot her three times in
the head. He then picked her up and placed her in the trunk of the car.
Koehler came to the garage, checked Regina’s pulse, and said that she was
still alive and told Curley that he should slit her throat. Curley got a
knife and then he and Kirk entered the car and drove off. Curley testified
that he heard a thumping noise coming from the trunk of the car shortly
after he left the Schrader garage. Hitchcock testified at trial that he
spent six and one-half hours with Kirk that day and that Kirk did not
mention what had just occurred in his garage. Hitchcock also testified that
Kirk’s behavior that day was normal. After dropping Kirk off at his friend
Roger Hitchcock’s house, Curley went on to the dump he had discovered
earlier in the day. At the dump Curley took Regina’s body from the trunk,
slightly cut her throat with the knife, placed her body in the refrigerator,
closed the refrigerator’s door, left the dump and returned to the Schraders’.
When he returned, Koehler told Curley that he had to shoot Austin, too,
since Austin was a “loose link.” At about 2:30 that afternoon Curley told
Austin to come out to the garage and, when he did, Curley shot him three
times in his head and at least twice in his body. Curley picked up his body
and placed it in the trunk of the car. Koehler then came out to the garage
and looked into the trunk at Austin’s body. Curley then drove the car to
“Snake Road” where he placed Austin’s body in a sluice pipe. Curley returned
to the Schrader residence, where Koehler cleaned up the blood in the trunk
of the car. The two departed the Schrader home together and, after buying a
chain, a lock and some spray paint, returned to the Mack/Hunsinger
residence. At dusk the two returned to the dump, to chain and lock the
refrigerator containing the body of Regina. The chain, however, was too
short to circle the refrigerator. The two then drove to “Twin Ponds”, near
the Schrader house, and, at Koehler’s suggestion, Curley threw the knife and
gun used in the murders into the pond. Koehler then drove Curley back to the
Mack/Hunsinger residence, left him and drove away alone. The next Sunday,
April 23, 1995, Curley moved to North Carolina. The bodies of Regina and
Austin were not immediately discovered. It was not until April 26, 1995,
when Richard Morris, searching for recyclables, came upon the refrigerator
containing Regina’s body and opened it. The state police were then called.
Mack heard that a body had been found in a refrigerator approximately half a
mile from her home, and, when she heard the news broadcast a description of
the clothing on the body, Mack recognized it as the clothing worn by Regina
when she was at her residence in the early morning hours of April 18, 1995.
Mack called the police and later in the day identified the body of Regina at
the Robert Packer Hospital, and she also informed the police that Regina had
been traveling with a child. Mack gave police permission to search her home,
where the police recovered a can of spray paint, a lock and bullets. The
police went to North Carolina on April 28, 1995 to interview Curley.
Immediately after they arrived, Curley confessed to the shootings. Curley
was taken to the Goldsboro Police Department and, while en route, gave
police the location where Austin’s body could be found. While in North
Carolina, Curley also provided information concerning where the murder
weapon could be found and provided details of the crimes. Curley also
implicated Koehler in the murders. The police found Austin’s body at
approximately 11:00 p.m. on April 28, 1995. On April 29, 1995, the police
recovered the discarded gun and knife from Twin Ponds. Koehler was arrested
for the murders of Regina and Austin. Trial testimony began on March 25,
1996. In addition to the evidence outlined above, Isidore Mihalakis, M.D., a
forensic pathologist, testified with reference to the injuries of Regina and
Austin. Dr. Mihalakis testified that the cause of Regina’s death was a
gunshot wound to the head and the manner of her death was homicide. Dr.
Mihalakis testified that the cause of Austin’s death was multiple gunshot
wounds and the manner of his death was homicide. After three weeks of trial,
on April 11, 1996, the jury convicted Koehler of two counts of murder in the
first degree, two counts of conspiracy to commit murder, two counts of
kidnapping and one count of burglary. At the conclusion of the penalty phase
of the trial, held on April 12, 1996, the jury returned two death sentences.
With regard to the murder of Regina, the jury found the aggravating
circumstance that Koehler had been convicted of another murder occurring
either before or at the time of Regina’s murder and no mitigating
circumstances. The jury likewise found no mitigating circumstances and the
same aggravating circumstance in Austin’s murder, as well as the aggravating
circumstance that, at the time of his death, Austin was less than twelve
years old. The trial court imposed the death sentences along with two five
to ten year prison terms for the conspiracy counts, two ten to twenty year
prison terms for the kidnapping counts and a five to ten year term on the
burglary conviction. *There are still appeals
pending and this execution is not likely to take place on this date. |
| Date
of scheduled execution |
State |
Victim name |
Inmate name |
Status |
| December 7, 2000 |
North Carolina |
Maurice Travone Williams
Richard Wall |
Russell William Tucker |
stayed |
| Russell William Tucker, 34, is
scheduled to die by lethal injection at 2 a.m. Dec. 7 for the 1994 slaying
in Forsyth County of Kmart security guard Maurice Travone Williams. Tucker
also is serving sentences for second-degree murder and armed robbery in
the shooting death of Winston-Salem cab driver Richard Wall. *There are still appeals
pending and this execution is not likely to take place on this date. |
| Date
of scheduled execution |
State |
Victim name |
Inmate name |
Status |
|
December 7, 2000 |
Florida |
Austin Carter Scott, 56
George Larry Hill |
Edward Castro |
executed |
| Florida is scheduled to
execute a 2-time killer Thursday who has chosen not to have an attorney or
file any last-minute appeals. Edward Castro, 50, again told Judge Jack
Singbush at a Nov. 14 hearing that he was competent to represent himself
and did not want any appeals filed to save his life. "There is
nothing going on and the indication is that nothing will be going
on," Assistant Attorney General Ken Nunnelly said. "Of course
that could change 5 minutes from now." Attorneys at the state agency
in Tallahassee that handles state inmate death appeals declined comment on
the Castro case. Typically, attorneys for death row inmates file a barrage
of appeals to state and federal courts trying to get their executions
stopped. Craig Waters, a spokesman for the Florida Supreme Court, said he
cannot recall a death case which didn't come before the high court in the
final days before execution. "It is certainly unusual," he said.
"In the 14 years I've been here it has never happened."
Castro is condemned for the choking and stabbing death of 56-year-old
Austin Carter Scott, who was lured to Castro's room in Ocala by the
promise of Old Milwaukee beer. Castro told authorities he began choking
Scott before pulling a knife from his sock. "I remember looking at
his face, and it was purple. I told him, "Hey man, you've lost. Dig
it?' That's when I started stabbing him.' In all, Castro stabbed Scott 8
times in the chest. Scott also had 3 defensive wounds on his arms. The
medical examiner said the thrusts penetrated Scott's lungs and his chest
cavity filled with blood. He died within minutes. When Castro, still
covered with the victim's blood, was later arrested in Columbia County, he
confessed to the slaying and led officials to Scott's body. Castro also
told authorities he killed George Larry Hill, an interior designer he met
at a St. Petersburg bar on Jan. 4, 1987. He is serving a life term for
that murder. He told detectives he preyed on older men in hopes of getting
money and their cars. Castro is the 2nd inmate this year who has asked for
his appeals to be dropped. Appeals were filed to try to stop the execution
of Dan Patrick Hauser, after he had said he did not want to fight for his
life. He died August 25 for the 1995 slaying of a woman in the Florida
Panhandle. |
| Date
of scheduled execution |
State |
Victim name |
Inmate name |
Status |
|
December 7, 2000 |
Texas |
Allen Hilzendager, 44 |
Claude Jones |
executed |
| Claude Jones was condemned for
the 1989 robbery and murder of a Point Blank liquor store owner. Jones is
set to die by lethal injection after 6 p.m. on 12/7 for the Nov. 14, 1989,
murder of 44-year-old Allen Hilzendager, owner of Zell's liquor store in
Point Blank. Hilzendager was shot 3 times with a .357 Magnum as he turned
to retrieve a bottle of liquor that Jones had requested. While Jones took
$900 in cash from the register, he missed at least $7,000 that was
separated between two other bags stored under the register and under a
counter. After taking the money, Jones fled the scene with at least 1
accomplice, Kerry Dixon. But Jones' departure did not go unnoticed - an
area resident, Leon Goodson, and his 14-year-old daughter had heard the
shots coming from the liquor store. Goodson, who had been working on his
car, saw Jones walk behind the counter and then leave the store in a
hurry. When Goodson went to check on Hilzendager, he saw the man lying in
a pool of blood. Goodson then called the police. Law authorities searched
Jones for several weeks before the former Houston electrician was found in
Fort Myers, Fla., where he was charged with robbing a bank. While Goodson
testified at Jones' trial, there also were many others who testified,
linking Jones to the scene. Among those people testifying at the
punishment phase of the trial was one of Jones' former friends, Mark
Jordan, who said Jones admitted killing Hilzendager. Jones has an
extensive criminal record including convictions both in Texas and in
Kansas for charges ranging from burglary and robbery to murder and
assault. |
| Date
of scheduled execution |
State |
Victim name |
Inmate name |
Status |
|
December 8, 2000 |
Florida |
Sharilyn Ritchie, 34 |
Robert Glock |
stayed |
| Sharilyn
Ritchie, a 34-year-old Manatee County schoolteacher, had just parked her
car at a Bradenton mall on Aug. 16, 1983, when she was kidnapped at
gunpoint by Glock and a cohort, Carl Puiatti. They stole her wedding ring,
forced her to withdraw $100 from a bank, then drove her car north 60 miles
to Pasco County. They released her in an orange grove just south of Dade
City and handed her a sun visor, her purse and her husband's baseball
mitt. They started to
drive away, then decided to kill her because she could identify them.
Glock and Puiatti returned three times and fired numerous shots at
Mrs. Ritchie. She managed to walk about 10 yards before collapsing for the
last time. When authorities found her body, she was clutching the leather
mitt to her chest. 5 days later, Glock and Puiatti were picked up by a New
Jersey state trooper who could not read the license plate on Mrs.
Ritchie's car. Glock and Puiatti both confessed to the murder, and in 1984
they were convicted and sentenced to death by a Pasco circuit judge.
Puiatti, now 38, is still on death row. A date for his execution has not
been set. The relatives
of Sharilyn Ritchie said Wednesday that they will take no pleasure in
Glock's execution. "We forgive him," said Mrs. Ritchie's sister,
Rebecca Burke. "We have no animosity for him." Glock said
his biggest regret was that he "didn't find God sooner. Mrs. Ritchie
wouldn't be dead." UPDATE: Stayed by the Florida Supreme Court
until January 10, 2001. |
| Date
of scheduled execution |
State |
Victim name |
Inmate name |
Status |
|
December 12, 2000 |
Federal |
Thomas Albert Rumbo
Gilberto Matos
Erasmo de la Fuente
unnamed victim
unnamed victim
unnamed victim
Diana Villareal
Bernabe Sosa, 21 |
Juan Raul Garza |
stayed |
|
Juan
Raul Garza was sentenced to death under Federal law on August 10, 1993, in
the Southern District of Texas, and five violations of drug and money
laundering laws. At sentencing, the Government introduced aggravating
factors evidence of four unadjudicated murders in Mexico, in which Garza
was involved. These included the killing of Bernabe Sosa, Mr. Garza's
21-year-old son-in-law, who prosecutors said was slain for losing a load of
marijuana, and of Diana Villareal. Prosecutors said Mr. Garza thought Ms.
Villareal had laughed at him at a Brownsville party and had her kidnapped
and injected with cocaine to feign an overdose. When Ms. Villareal did not
die, Mr. Garza, who was present, had her strangled, the prosecutors said. Specifically, Garza was convicted of ordering the
murders of Thomas Albert Rumbo, Gilberto Matos, and Erasmo De La Fuente in
order to further his control over a major drug trafficking organization.
In addition to his death sentence, Garza received a life term for
conspiracy to import into the United States a quantity exceeding 1,000
Kilos of marijuana. Juan Raul Garza, 43 years old, is one of six
inmates who have been convicted under the CCE statute and who have
received a death sentence. Garza has exhausted all direct and
collateral appeals for his conviction. In accordance with Federal
regulations, the method of execution will be by lethal injection. UPDATE:
This sentence was stayed for six months by President Clinton. Garza was
eventually executed in June 2001, during President George W. Bush's term. |
| Date
of scheduled execution |
State |
Victim name |
Inmate name |
Status |
| December 12, 2000 |
Ohio |
Veader Prince, 68 |
Sean Carter |
stayed |
|
Evely Prince Carter adopted Sean Carter when he was ten years old. Carter
had been taken from his birth mother in 1981, due to neglect and abuse.
Evely Carter lived in close proximity to her mother, Veader Prince, the
victim in this case. In February 1997, Carter had been thrown out of Evely
Carter's house and began living with Veader Prince, his adoptive
grandmother. He stayed there until July 1997, when he was incarcerated at
the Geauga County Jail for theft. On Saturday, September 13, 1997, Vernon
Prince, Veader's son, stopped by to see his mother and noticed Carter
sleeping in her house. Veader was not there. As Vernon Prince was leaving,
Veader pulled in the driveway and upon being questioned, told Vernon Prince
that she did not know that Carter was there. Veader and Vernon went inside
the house and Veader talked to Carter. When she came out of the room where
Carter had been sleeping, Veader asked Vernon to give Carter the keys and
title to his car (blue 1984 Chevette) so that Carter could leave. Vernon
Prince complied with this request. Vernon Prince also gave his mother some
money ($250) before he left. At that time, Carter was still in Prince's
house. That same day, Evely Carter worked from 2:00 p.m. until 10:00 p.m.
During her shift, she received a telephone call from her husband, informing
her that Carter had been released from jail. She stopped at Veader's house
after she got off work, arriving at 10:45 p.m. She tried to enter the door
and found that it was locked, something her mother had never done. She
knocked on her mother's window and then her mother opened the door. Veader
explained to Evely Carter that the door was locked because she "told that
boy [Carter] that he wasn't allowed to come back here." When Evely Carter
saw her mother that night, Veader was wearing a white turban with a long
john top underneath a white T-shirt and long john bottoms. Evely Carter went
to work the next day, Sunday, September 14, and did not get off work until
11:00 p.m. Her husband called her at work and told her that she should check
on her mother because no one could find her. Evely Carter went to Veader's
house. She entered and called out for her mother. There was no answer. She
left Veader's house to get her husband and returned with him to Veader's
house. At that time it was midnight. Also on Sunday, another of Veader's
sons, Travis Prince, had gone to Veader's house around 10:00 a.m. He had
walked into her bedroom and heard water running in the bathroom. Though the
door to the bathroom was closed, he could tell the light was on. He went
into the kitchen of the house and saw chicken in a pot on the stove,
simmering. Travis Prince left the house. When he returned later in the day,
he saw the same scene. This time, he opened the bathroom door, and upon
discovering that it was empty, he turned the water off. He yelled for his
mother and, getting no answer, became alarmed. He returned to the kitchen to
turn off the stove and then began going through each room calling for his
mother. After searching the house and yard, he returned to the kitchen and
noticed a note on the table that said, "Took Sean to the hospital." At that
point he had not noticed any blood in the house. He did not think it was
Carter, because he believed that Carter was still in the county jail. Since
he could not find her, her purse, or her keys, he decided that his mother
must have given a ride to someone, and ceased being concerned. Travis Prince
left the house around 7:00 p.m., and returned to his apartment. When he
arrived home, he called his brother-in-law, Jerry Carter (Evely Carter's
husband), and asked if he had seen Veader, but he had not. Jerry Carter went
to Veader's house and could not find Veader. He told Travis Prince that
Evely Carter would check again at 11:00 p.m., after she got off work. Travis
Prince met the Carters at his mother's house around 11:15 p.m., and talked
to neighbors to see if they knew anything about Veader's absence. Jerry and
Evely Carter and their nephew, James Shoper, began to search the area. They
searched the garage and the cars in the driveway. Evely Carter noticed a
garbage bag with clothes in one of the vans. They went back into the house,
and then down into the basement. Evely Carter noticed a chair that had blood
on it. As they continued searching the basement, they saw Veader's feet
sticking out of a pile of clothes on the basement floor. They called the
police immediately. Once the clothes were removed, Veader was found lying
face down on the basement floor. She was wearing only a white T-shirt, which
was covered with blood and had holes. Her glasses were pushed up on her head
and one of the lenses was missing, found later on the floor of the basement.
Her dentures were discovered in the master bedroom. Veader's body appeared
to have lacerations on her hands and face. Police found significant
bloodstains on the carpet in the master bedroom, on a couch, and on the
mattress. They also found droplets and stains of blood on the stairs and the
walls leading to the basement. An autopsy revealed that Veader had suffered
eighteen stab wounds, a subarachnoid hemorrhage caused by blunt trauma,
abrasions, and contusions to her right thigh. The left side of her face was
swollen, indicating blunt trauma. One stab wound nicked the aorta, which was
the immediate cause of death. Other forensic testing revealed the presence
of sperm, located on a swab taken from the rectum of the victim. The swabs
taken of the mouth and vagina were negative. DNA testing matched the rectal
swab to Carter. After talking to the family during the investigation, the
police placed a "pick-up and hold" order on Carter. They learned that
another of Veader's sons had been in jail with Carter, and that Carter had
made a remark to him about not getting along with his grandmother. On
September 15, 1997, Daniel Hepler, a police officer with the Chippewa
Township Police in Beaver County, Pennsylvania, was on patrol when he
noticed a vehicle backed in among some small trees. The car had Ohio plates
and he called the dispatcher to run the plate number. Hepler approached the
vehicle and noticed a person (Carter) sleeping in the back seat. He knocked
on the window and asked Carter to get out of the car. Carter had no
identification or registration information for the vehicle. Carter told
Hepler his name was "Bill Carl" and gave him a date of birth; a computer
search revealed that no such person existed. The license plate information
came back as registered to a Chrysler vehicle, even though the vehicle was a
Chevrolet. Because the name and date of birth provided by Carter were false
and the car's registration was fraudulent, Hepler told Carter that he was
going to issue a citation and tow the car. While waiting for the tow truck
to arrive, Hepler did a plain view inspection of the car for personal
effects. Carter stated he did not want anything from the car. Hepler found
two sets of keys and some money, which he gave to Carter. When the tow truck
arrived, Hepler transported Carter to the police department. Carter appeared
confused and kept asking Hepler where he was. When the vehicle registration
came back as not matching the vehicle, Hepler obtained the vehicle
identification number (VIN) and ran it through the computer. The car was
registered to Vernon Prince. Hepler obtained a phone number and telephoned
the Prince residence. The woman who answered the phone informed Hepler that
the man he had in custody was wanted for murder. Hepler contacted the
Trumbull County Sheriff's Department and verified that Carter was wanted for
questioning relating to a murder. Carter was placed in a holding cell while
detectives from the sheriff's department traveled to Pennsylvania. Major
James Phillips, Sergeant Hyde, and Lieutenant Borger traveled to Chippewa
Township to question Carter. After giving Carter his Miranda warnings and
obtaining a waiver of his rights, Phillips and Hyde obtained an audio and
video confession to the murder of Veader Prince. According to Carter's
confession, after he obtained the car keys from Vernon Prince, he left
Veader's house and drove around for a while. He attempted to stay at his
aunt's house, but could not. He returned to Veader's house and, since the
door was locked, climbed through the bedroom window. He had called out to
Veader, hoping to convince her to allow him to stay there for a week. They
got into an argument and Veader told him to leave. He kept telling her that
he had nowhere to go. She tried to push him out the door and he started to
beat her. At some point, he got a knife from the kitchen and started
stabbing her. He described it as just "going off" and could not provide
exact details of what happened during the assault, although he did remember
hitting her in the face and stabbing her in the neck. The next thing Carter
remembered was being in the kitchen and washing his hands and the knife. He
walked downstairs and saw Veader on the basement floor and then started to
cover things up. He covered her with some clothes, moved the couch in her
bedroom to cover up blood on the carpet, turned the water on in her bathroom
and closed the door, and put a chicken in a pot on the stove and turned the
stove on. He left a note on the kitchen table saying, "Took Sean to the
hospital" in case someone saw blood in the house. He changed his clothes,
since they were bloody. He then took about $150 from her purse and left. He
originally took her keys, thinking he would take one of her vans, and
actually put his bag of clothes in the van, but could not get the van
started. He got into Vernon Prince's car and drove off. Since he did not
have a license plate, he stopped to steal a plate from a car in
Garrettsville. To remove and transfer the plates to his car, he used the
knife that he had stabbed his grandmother with. Upon direct questioning by
the officers, Carter denied taking off his grandmother's clothes or raping
her, but admitted she was wearing only a T-shirt when he left her. After
Carter signed a waiver allowing his car to be searched, the knife was found
in the car. He waived extradition and was brought back to Ohio for
prosecution. Carter was indicted for one count of aggravated murder with
three capital specifications, aggravated burglary, aggravated robbery, and
rape. He was also indicted on one count of aggravated burglary, one count of
aggravated robbery, and one count of rape. After a jury trial, during which
he absented himself from most of the proceedings, Carter was found guilty of
aggravated murder and two of the capital specifications, aggravated robbery,
and rape. The jury also found Carter guilty of aggravated robbery, rape, and
the lesser-included offense of criminal trespass on the aggravated burglary
charge, and Carter was sentenced to prison on these charges. 6 After a
penalty hearing, the jury recommended that the death sentence be imposed,
and the trial court adopted the jury's recommendation. *There are still
appeals pending and the execution is not likely to take place on this date. |
| Date
of scheduled execution |
State |
Victim name |
Inmate name |
Status |
|
December 19, 2000 |
Arkansas |
Leon Brown, 67 |
David Wayne Johnson |
executed |
| A man convicted of beating a
night watchman to death during a warehouse robbery was executed by
injection Tuesday. David Dewayne Johnson, 37, was convicted of
killing Leon Brown at the Little Rock Crate and Basket Co. in 1989.
Johnson made no final statement. He lost appeals that claimed his lawyer
was manic-depressive and incapable of defending an accused murderer.
Prosecutors said Johnson's fingerprints were found at the scene and items
taken from the crate company were found in Johnson's home. Gov. Mike
Huckabee denied Johnson's request for mercy. He also said delaying the
execution until after the holiday would have set it closer to Johnson's
birthday, Jan. 10. "This is in many ways an unfortunate
case," the U.S. Eighth District Court of Appeals wrote in upholding
denial of Johnson's appeal. The court's March ruling acknowledged that
Johnson's first lawyer might have been mentally ill during his trial, that
he did not press hard to admit certain testimony and that he behaved
unprofessionally during jury selection. "We nevertheless are
convinced that the governing law requires that this conviction and
sentence be upheld," the judges wrote. "We deal in specific
facts, not abstractions, and petitioner has failed to show any reasonable
likelihood that the outcome of this case would have been different even if
his lawyer had conducted himself perfectly," the opinion said. |
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