Post by CCADP on Aug 30, 2005 21:36:52 GMT -5
State’s planned execution prompts vigils in 7 cities
Published Tuesday, August 30, 2005
ST. LOUIS (AP) - Death penalty opponents planned vigils today in seven cities as the state prepares for its fourth execution this year - but the first since the St. Louis circuit attorney began investigating whether an innocent man was put to death in 1995.
Timothy Johnston, 44, has admitted he beat his wife to death in 1989 at their St. Louis home. His execution is scheduled for 12:01 a.m. tomorrow at the prison in Bonne Terre.
The Eighth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals is deciding Johnson’s argument that Missouri’s three-drug method of lethal injection violates the inmate’s constitutional right against cruel and unusual punishment. A federal judge last week ruled against Johnston.
Missouri has executed 64 men since reinstituting the death penalty in 1989, including three this year, in March, April and May.
In July, St. Louis Circuit Attorney Jennifer Joyce reopened the case of Larry Griffin, convicted of a 1980 drive-by murder and executed in 1995. A study by a Michigan professor raised enough doubts about Griffin’s guilt that several people - including members of the victim’s family - asked Joyce to revisit the case.
A spokesman for Gov. Matt Blunt said that despite the Griffin case, the governor was not considering a moratorium on the death penalty.
Jeff Stack of Missourians to Abolish the Death Penalty said vigils will take place in Cape Girardeau, Columbia, Jefferson City, St. Louis, Kansas City, Springfield and Bonne Terre in the hours leading up to the scheduled execution. He believed the Griffin case was generating more ambivalence about the death penalty.
"It’s a moral mistake anytime we decide to embrace violence with violence," Stack said.
Johnston declined an interview request. Johnston’s attorney, Chris McGraugh, said Johnston is "doing OK. He’s still holding out some hope."
On June 30, 1989, paramedics called to Johnston’s home found the sidewalk and porch covered in blood. Inside, they found Nancy Johnston dead, her face and torso swollen and bloodied.
An autopsy revealed a broken nose, collarbone and ribs; bruising and tearing in her heart, liver and spleen; and injuries to her head, face, scalp and lips. Bleeding under the skin confirmed she was alive throughout her severe beating.
Johnston at first blamed a motorcycle gang. He later confessed, accusing his wife of infidelities.
McGraugh said Johnston has expressed "considerable regret" over the crime.
Copyright 2005 Associated Press
Published Tuesday, August 30, 2005
ST. LOUIS (AP) - Death penalty opponents planned vigils today in seven cities as the state prepares for its fourth execution this year - but the first since the St. Louis circuit attorney began investigating whether an innocent man was put to death in 1995.
Timothy Johnston, 44, has admitted he beat his wife to death in 1989 at their St. Louis home. His execution is scheduled for 12:01 a.m. tomorrow at the prison in Bonne Terre.
The Eighth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals is deciding Johnson’s argument that Missouri’s three-drug method of lethal injection violates the inmate’s constitutional right against cruel and unusual punishment. A federal judge last week ruled against Johnston.
Missouri has executed 64 men since reinstituting the death penalty in 1989, including three this year, in March, April and May.
In July, St. Louis Circuit Attorney Jennifer Joyce reopened the case of Larry Griffin, convicted of a 1980 drive-by murder and executed in 1995. A study by a Michigan professor raised enough doubts about Griffin’s guilt that several people - including members of the victim’s family - asked Joyce to revisit the case.
A spokesman for Gov. Matt Blunt said that despite the Griffin case, the governor was not considering a moratorium on the death penalty.
Jeff Stack of Missourians to Abolish the Death Penalty said vigils will take place in Cape Girardeau, Columbia, Jefferson City, St. Louis, Kansas City, Springfield and Bonne Terre in the hours leading up to the scheduled execution. He believed the Griffin case was generating more ambivalence about the death penalty.
"It’s a moral mistake anytime we decide to embrace violence with violence," Stack said.
Johnston declined an interview request. Johnston’s attorney, Chris McGraugh, said Johnston is "doing OK. He’s still holding out some hope."
On June 30, 1989, paramedics called to Johnston’s home found the sidewalk and porch covered in blood. Inside, they found Nancy Johnston dead, her face and torso swollen and bloodied.
An autopsy revealed a broken nose, collarbone and ribs; bruising and tearing in her heart, liver and spleen; and injuries to her head, face, scalp and lips. Bleeding under the skin confirmed she was alive throughout her severe beating.
Johnston at first blamed a motorcycle gang. He later confessed, accusing his wife of infidelities.
McGraugh said Johnston has expressed "considerable regret" over the crime.
Copyright 2005 Associated Press