ATMORE, Ala. \u2014 A man who killed an Alabama convenience store clerk more than two decades ago was put to death Thursday night, an execution that required two consciousness tests as the inmate heaved and coughed 13 minutes into the lethal injection.<\/p>\n
Ronald Bert Smith Jr., 45, was pronounced dead at 11:05 p.m., about 30 minutes after the procedure began at the state prison in southwest Alabama.<\/p>\n
Smith was convicted of capital murder in the Nov. 8, 1994, fatal shooting of Huntsville store clerk Casey Wilson. A jury voted 7-5 to recommend a sentence of life imprisonment, but a judge overrode that recommendation and sentenced Smith to death.<\/p>\n
Smith heaved and coughed repeatedly, clenching his fists and raising his head at the beginning of the execution. A prison guard performed two consciousness checks before the final two lethal drugs were administered. During the first one, Smith moved his arm. He slightly raised his right arm again after the second consciousness test.<\/p>\n
The meaning of those movements will likely be debated. One of Smith\u2019s attorneys whispered to another attorney, \u201cHe\u2019s reacting,\u201d and pointed out the inmate\u2019s repeated movements.<\/p>\n
The state prison commissioner said he did not see any reaction to the consciousness tests.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe do know we followed our protocol. We are absolutely convinced of that,\u201d Alabama Corrections Commissioner Jeff Dunn said Thursday evening. \u201cThere will be an autopsy that will be done on Mr. Smith and if there were any irregularities those will hopefully be shown or born out in the autopsy. I think the question is probably better left to the medical experts,\u201d Dunn said when asked if the movement\u2019s indicated the state\u2019s process should be changed.<\/p>\n
Alabama uses the sedative midazolam as the first drug in a three-drug lethal injection combination. Smith and other inmates argued in a court case that the drug was an unreliable sedative and could cause them to feel pain, citing its use in problematic executions. The U.S. Supreme Court has upheld the use of the drug.<\/p>\n
Smith replied, \u201cNo ma\u2019am\u201d when asked by the prison warden if he had any final words.<\/p>\n
A member of Wilson\u2019s family, who was not identified, witnessed the execution. The victim\u2019s family did not make a statement.<\/p>\n
Wilson was pistol-whipped and then shot in the head during the robbery, court documents show. Surveillance video showed Smith entering the store and recovering spent shell casings from the bathroom where Wilson was shot, according to the record.<\/p>\n
In overriding the jury\u2019s recommendation at the 1995 trial, a judge liked the slaying to an execution, saying Wilson had already been pistol-whipped into submission and Smith ignored his pleas for mercy. Wilson had a newborn infant at the time of his death.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe trial court described Smith\u2019s acts as \u2018an execution style slaying.\u2019 Tonight, justice was finally served,\u201d Alabama Attorney General Luther Strange said in a statement after the execution.<\/p>\n
U.S. Supreme Court justices twice paused the execution as Smith\u2019s attorneys argued for a delay, saying a judge shouldn\u2019t have been able to impose the death penalty when a jury recommended he receive life imprisonment.<\/p>\n
Four liberal justices said they would have halted the execution, but five were needed to do so.<\/p>\n
Smith\u2019s attorneys had urged the nation\u2019s highest court to block the planned execution to review the judge\u2019s override.<\/p>\n
Smith\u2019s lawyers argued a January decision that struck down Florida\u2019s death penalty structure because it gave too much power to judges raises legal questions about Alabama\u2019s process. In Alabama, a jury can recommend a sentence of life without parole, but a judge can override that recommendation to impose a death sentence.<\/p>\n
Alabama is the only state that allows judicial override, they argued.<\/p>\n
\u201cAlabama is alone among the states in allowing a judge to sentence someone to death based on judicial fact finding contrary to a jury\u2019s verdict,\u201d attorneys for Smith wrote Wednesday.<\/p>\n
Lawyers for the state argued in a court filing Tuesday that the sentence was legally sound, and that it is appropriate for judges to make the sentencing decision.<\/p>\n
Smith, the son of a NASA contract employee, became an Eagle Scout at 15, but his life spiraled downward because of alcoholism, according to a clemency request to Alabama\u2019s governor. He had a final meal of fried chicken and french fries and was visited during the day by his parents and son.<\/p>\n
Alabama has been attempting to resume executions after a lull caused by a shortage of execution drugs and litigation over the drugs used.<\/p>\n
The state executed Christopher Eugene Brooks in January for the 1993 rape and beating death of a woman. It was the state\u2019s first execution since 2013. Judges stayed two other executions that had been scheduled this year.<\/p>\n
By: Associated Press<\/p>\n
Source: \u00a0NY Post<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"