Texas executes killer after US court denies stay based on man's low IQ
Source: Agencies |
August 9, 2012, Thursday
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A TEXAS man convicted of killing a police informant was executed Tuesday evening after the US Supreme Court rejected arguments that he was too mentally impaired to qualify for the death penalty.
Marvin Wilson, 54, was pronounced dead 14 minutes after his lethal injection began at the state prison in Huntsville. Wilson's attorneys had argued that he should have been ineligible for capital punishment because of his low IQ.
Before the lethal drugs were administered, Wilson smiled and raised his head from the death-chamber gurney, nodding to his three sisters and son as they watched through a window a few meters away. He told them several times that he loved them and asked that they give his mother "a big hug."
"Y'all do understand that I came here a sinner and leaving a saint," he said. "Take me home Jesus, take me home Lord, take me home Lord!"
He urged his son not to cry, told his family he would see them again, and then told the warden he was ready. He didn't acknowledge his victim's father, two brothers and an uncle, watching through an adjacent window. As the lethal drug took effect, he quickly went to sleep. He briefly snored before his breathing became noticeably shallow, then it stopped.
In their appeal to the Supreme Court, Wilson's attorneys had pointed to a psychological test conducted in 2004 that pegged his IQ at 61, below the generally accepted minimum competency standard of 70. But lower courts agreed with state attorneys, who argued that Wilson's claim was based on a single possibly faulty test and that his mental impairment claim wasn't supported by other tests and assessments over the years.
The Supreme Court denied a stay of execution less than two hours before his lethal injection began. Lead defense attorney Lee Kovarsky said he was "gravely disappointed and saddened" by the ruling, calling it "outrageous that the state of Texas continues to utilize unscientific guidelines ... to determine which citizens with intellectual disability are exempt from execution."
Wilson was convicted of murdering 21-year-old Jerry Williams in November 1992, several days after police seized 24 grams of cocaine from Wilson's apartment and arrested him. Witnesses testified that Wilson and another man, Andrew Lewis, beat Williams. Wilson, who was free on bond, accused Williams of snitching on him about the drugs, they said. Neighborhood residents said they heard a gunshot a short time later. Williams was found dead the next day.
Marvin Wilson, 54, was pronounced dead 14 minutes after his lethal injection began at the state prison in Huntsville. Wilson's attorneys had argued that he should have been ineligible for capital punishment because of his low IQ.
Before the lethal drugs were administered, Wilson smiled and raised his head from the death-chamber gurney, nodding to his three sisters and son as they watched through a window a few meters away. He told them several times that he loved them and asked that they give his mother "a big hug."
"Y'all do understand that I came here a sinner and leaving a saint," he said. "Take me home Jesus, take me home Lord, take me home Lord!"
He urged his son not to cry, told his family he would see them again, and then told the warden he was ready. He didn't acknowledge his victim's father, two brothers and an uncle, watching through an adjacent window. As the lethal drug took effect, he quickly went to sleep. He briefly snored before his breathing became noticeably shallow, then it stopped.
In their appeal to the Supreme Court, Wilson's attorneys had pointed to a psychological test conducted in 2004 that pegged his IQ at 61, below the generally accepted minimum competency standard of 70. But lower courts agreed with state attorneys, who argued that Wilson's claim was based on a single possibly faulty test and that his mental impairment claim wasn't supported by other tests and assessments over the years.
The Supreme Court denied a stay of execution less than two hours before his lethal injection began. Lead defense attorney Lee Kovarsky said he was "gravely disappointed and saddened" by the ruling, calling it "outrageous that the state of Texas continues to utilize unscientific guidelines ... to determine which citizens with intellectual disability are exempt from execution."
Wilson was convicted of murdering 21-year-old Jerry Williams in November 1992, several days after police seized 24 grams of cocaine from Wilson's apartment and arrested him. Witnesses testified that Wilson and another man, Andrew Lewis, beat Williams. Wilson, who was free on bond, accused Williams of snitching on him about the drugs, they said. Neighborhood residents said they heard a gunshot a short time later. Williams was found dead the next day.
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