Texas fatality row inmate Quintin Jones has actually ended up being the first prisoner performed in the state for 10 months.
Jones, 41, was convicted of fatally beating his 83-year-old terrific aunt Berthena Bryant in 1999 and also ended up being the very first implementation in Texas of 2021 on Wednesday evening.
In an impressive video message from prison released on 10 May, Mr Jones pleaded with Texas governor Greg Abbott for mercy.
Yet the governor and also the US Supreme Court did not step in and the Texas Department of Criminal Justice carried out Jones’ implementation by lethal shot right before 7pm.
The state had taken a respite from executing executions during the pandemic till Jones’ went on at the Texas State Penitentiary at Huntsville.
Prosecutors said that Jones beat his terrific aunt to death with a bat at her house in Fort Worth, Texas, and also swiped $30 from her purse to get drugs.
Jones’ lawyer, Michael Mowla has actually stated that Jones is intellectually handicapped and that his death penalty is based upon discredited testament.
The support attorney has additionally claimed that Jones’ history of alcohol and drug abuse, which began in teenage years, and also physical and sex-related abuse were never considered at his test.
Members of Bryant’s household have actually additionally called for a remain in the execution, including her sibling Mattie Long, Jones’ great-aunt.
“Because I was so near Bert, her death harm me a great deal. Even so, God is merciful. Quintin can not bring her back. I can’t bring her back. I am writing this to ask you to please extra Quintin’s life,” she claimed in a letter seeking for his clemency.
Jones states he is not the exact same person who eliminated his great-aunt when he was 20 years old and informed The New York Times in an unusual video clip message from jail that he would certainly spend the rest of his life behind bars “to far better myself and also to better others along the road.”
“Another thing that helped me out was my great-aunt, Aunt Mattie. It was her sibling. By her loving me enough to forgive me, it provided me the toughness to try to do far better as well as want to do better,” Jones stated.
The Texas Board of Pardons and also Paroles voted all on Tuesday to reject the request however guv Greg Abbott determined not to overrule the board.
In court documents submitted recently, prosecutors said the death sentence was warranted due to Jones’ violent history, consisting of assaulting instructors as well as participating in two various other murders.
A number of top-level numbers have actually additionally wared the execution proceeding, consisting of stars Mandy Patinkin and Sarah Paulson.
“We are a country that prides itself on second chances. Quin is clear-eyed that he is worthy of to be in prison for the rest of his life,” Suleika Jaouad, a writer that has corresponded with Jones for a decade, said.