US: Georgia executes 72-year-old death row inmate

[webfact]

Oldest death row inmate in Georgia executed

ATLANTA (AP) — Georgia has executed a 72-year-old man, its oldest death row inmate, for the killing of a convenience store manager during a robbery decades ago.

The state Department of Corrections says Brandon Astor Jones was pronounced dead at 12:46 a.m. Wednesday after a lethal injection at the state prison in Jackson. He was convicted in the shooting death of suburban Atlanta store manager Roger Tackett.

A federal judge granted Jones a new sentencing hearing in 1989 because jurors were improperly allowed to bring a Bible into their deliberation room. He was resentenced to death in 1997.

Another man was also convicted and received a death sentence in the case: Van Roosevelt Solomon was executed in 1985.

Evidence at trial indicated a nearby police officer heard four shots in the store, drew his weapon and found Jones and Solomon inside.

-- (c) Associated Press 2016-02-03

[JetsetBkk]

That is absolutely horrendous, poor guy sitting in his cell waiting to die for 19 years.

Should've executed him 19 years ago.

[attrayant]

72 years old? Good thing they got to him before he died.

[Jingthing]

Whatever happened to reserving the death penalty to more spectacularly heinous cases, such as serial killers, child murderers, etc.? I'm generally anti- death penalty but not strongly so, especially in really heinous cases. Some states in the U.S. aren't doing all that much better than Iran in overdoing the death penalty.

[Chicog]

That is absolutely horrendous, poor guy sitting in his cell waiting to die for 19 years.

Should've executed him 19 years ago.

Maybe he didn't want to die.

[JetsetBkk]

That is absolutely horrendous, poor guy sitting in his cell waiting to die for 19 years.

Should've executed him 19 years ago.

Maybe he didn't want to die.

I hope so.

[Jingthing]

African American, he was ...

[Grouse]

How civilised!

[Jingthing]

How civilised!

Indeed.

They fed him a last meal.

Prison food it was.

[Jingthing]

Many people don't know this, but in the U.S. system, that it actually costs taxpayers MORE to execute people than to keep them imprisoned for life. Not saying these decisions should be made on costs alone, but it is interesting.

[JetsetBkk]

African American, he was ...

And if he'd been white...? ( hmm, nice coffee)

[Jingthing]

African American, he was ...

And if he'd been white...? ( hmm, nice coffee)

More likely that he'd still be alive if he was white.

That's another reason I'm against the death penalty for less than spectacularly heinous crimes.

The U.S. "justice" system tends to punish minorities more harshly.

It isn't an explicit policy, per se, it just works out that way.

It also of course punishes the poor in general more harshly, of any race, for obvious reasons. They can't afford good lawyers.

[thpon]

19 years waiting to be killed.....wow nearly as bad as the sentence itself

[reggaebkk]

Couldn't chew, he had to as for spinach purée for his last meal...

[Asheron]

Whatever happened to reserving the death penalty to more spectacularly heinous cases, such as serial killers, child murderers, etc.? I'm generally anti- death penalty but not strongly so, especially in really heinous cases. Some states in the U.S. aren't doing all that much better than Iran in overdoing the death penalty.

Ah yes because some states in the US, according to you, have public hangings of gays. Gotcha.

[cyberfarang]

That is absolutely horrendous, poor guy sitting in his cell waiting to die for 19 years.

Should've executed him 19 years ago.

Good, they made the murderer suffer for years and then topped him. Real justice served for the innocent victim.

[Asheron]

African American, he was ...

And if he'd been white...? ( hmm, nice coffee)

More likely that he'd still be alive if he was white.

That's another reason I'm against the death penalty for less than spectacularly heinous crimes.

The U.S. "justice" system tends to punish minorities more harshly.

It isn't an explicit policy, per se, it just works out that way.

It also of course punishes the poor in general more harshly, of any race, for obvious reasons. They can't afford good lawyers.

No he wouldn't, he would still be dead.

And stop spreading lies about minorities (and you mean black) getting harsher penalties "because they are black"... reason is that black people commit about half of all homicides in the US all the while only are about 13% of the entire population.

[Songlaw]

Whatever happened to reserving the death penalty to more spectacularly heinous cases, such as serial killers, child murderers, etc.? I'm generally anti- death penalty but not strongly so, especially in really heinous cases. Some states in the U.S. aren't doing all that much better than Iran in overdoing the death penalty.

Georgia has always been sort of a "twilight zone" of barbarity, JT. Baseline intelligence among the general populace isn't all that it could be, either. I learned many moons ago, stay out of there if at all possible. It seems to be particularly notable in the blond/blue eyed male population. Don't even attempt to reason with them. You'll wind up blind-sided by a wrench. Gotta be something in the water.

[Chicog]

A record-breaking number of people were exonerated in 2015 — freed after serving time in American prisons for crimes they did not commit.

In all, 149 people spent an average of 15 years in prison before being cleared last year, according to a new report (.pdf) out Wednesday from the National Registry of Exonerations, a project at the University of Michigan Law School.

The convictions ranged from lower level offenses, such as 47 drug crimes, to major felonies, including 54 murder convictions that were overturned. Five of the convicts were awaiting execution, and were saved last year when courts ruled they didn't belong in the prison in the first place.

http://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/jailed-innocent-record-number-people-exonerated-2015-n510196

[Basil B]

African American, he was ...

And if he'd been white...? ( hmm, nice coffee)

More likely that he'd still be alive if he was white.

That's another reason I'm against the death penalty for less than spectacularly heinous crimes.

The U.S. "justice" system tends to punish minorities more harshly.

It isn't an explicit policy, per se, it just works out that way.

It also of course punishes the poor in general more harshly, of any race, for obvious reasons. They can't afford good lawyers.

No he wouldn't, he would still be dead.

And stop spreading lies about minorities (and you mean black) getting harsher penalties "because they are black"... reason is that black people commit about half of all homicides in the US all the while only are about 13% of the entire population.

I am sure JT is right...

Racism is still endemic in America particularly those states that practice the death penalty...

[Asheron]

More likely that he'd still be alive if he was white.

That's another reason I'm against the death penalty for less than spectacularly heinous crimes.

The U.S. "justice" system tends to punish minorities more harshly.

It isn't an explicit policy, per se, it just works out that way.

It also of course punishes the poor in general more harshly, of any race, for obvious reasons. They can't afford good lawyers.

No he wouldn't, he would still be dead.

And stop spreading lies about minorities (and you mean black) getting harsher penalties "because they are black"... reason is that black people commit about half of all homicides in the US all the while only are about 13% of the entire population.

I am sure JT is right...

Racism is still endemic in America particularly those states that practice the death penalty...

And by racism you mean exclusively white on black?

[smotherb]

That is absolutely horrendous, poor guy sitting in his cell waiting to die for 19 years.

Should've executed him 19 years ago.

No, cannot; to appease the anti-death penalty crowd, the courts allowed multiple appeals.

[Jingthing]

Talking about blacks and Latinos.

[oldgent]

who is the person who took the decision to execute this man after all this time, I find this appalling America needs to change its Laws concerning Execution. why is every state got its own say on the laws, surely all of America should have the same law.

[Andaman Al]

African American, he was ...

How civilised!

Indeed.

They fed him a last meal.

Prison food it was.

Have you been watching Star Wars and getting a top up on Yoda?

Anyway, it would appear it is coming into election season, so all those politicians wanting the republican vote will be looking for a few high profile cases to send to the Grim Reaper to keep the population happy.

[White Christmas13]

Many people don't know this, but in the U.S. system, that it actually costs taxpayers MORE to execute people than to keep them imprisoned for life. Not saying these decisions should be made on costs alone, but it is interesting.

Details please

[Jingthing]

Many people don't know this, but in the U.S. system, that it actually costs taxpayers MORE to execute people than to keep them imprisoned for life. Not saying these decisions should be made on costs alone, but it is interesting.

Details please

No. Because I've posted proof before and can't be bothered to be your googlebot.

[Jingthing]

African American, he was ...

How civilised!

Indeed.

They fed him a last meal.

Prison food it was.

Have you been watching Star Wars and getting a top up on Yoda?

Anyway, it would appear it is coming into election season, so all those politicians wanting the republican vote will be looking for a few high profile cases to send to the Grim Reaper to keep the population happy.

Mildly sarcastic you are.

[Chicog]

That is absolutely horrendous, poor guy sitting in his cell waiting to die for 19 years.

Should've executed him 19 years ago.

No, cannot; to appease the anti-death penalty crowd, the courts allowed multiple appeals.

See post #20.

Fair enough?

[helpisgood]

That is absolutely horrendous, poor guy sitting in his cell waiting to die for 19 years.

Should've executed him 19 years ago.

Good, they made the murderer suffer for years and then topped him. Real justice served for the innocent victim.

I never get it when people make such statements that justice had been served, esp. for death penalty cases. Yes, it sure looks like he had committed a very bad act, and something surely must be done in such cases. Yet, what makes you so confident that whatever pain he had suffered was the appropriate amount of justice? Would it been more just to have executed him years ago or waited even longer to do so or maybe even paroled him? What criterion do we use to decide if someone should die or not die? How much do you really and truly know about this person to be able to judge that he should die and how he should die?

So, if you, hypothetically, were the one to have decided his fate, are you really confident that you have judged him correctly?

Finally, consider this: What if, after all of these years, he is a very different person (I know that I am very different than I was many years ago and would never do some of the stupid things I had done), felt all the pain of his wrongdoing to the point of being fully remorseful and became a truly good person? I really do not know if this is true or not. I haven't met with him and studied what kind of person he was, but I haven't judged him either. Have you?