Anthony Chaney was executed by the State of Arizona for the murder of Officer John Jamison
According to court documents Anthony Chaney and his girlfriend were driving a stolen vehicle with a number of firearms inside. When the initial Officer pulled them over Anthony would pull out a gun and had his girlfriend disarm him and he would be handcuffed to a tree. When Reserve Officer John Jamison arrived on the scene he would be fired at with an AK47 and pinned down. Chaney would walk up to the Officer and fire at him point blank killing him
Anthony Chaney would be arrested, convicted and sentenced to death
Anthony Chaney would be executed by lethal injection on February 16 2000
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When Was Anthony Chaney Executed
Anthony Chaney was executed on February 16 2000
Anthony Chaney Case
Chaney and his “wife,” Deanna (he was married to another when he “married” the woman who was also his co-defendant) were out of Arizona when their crime spree began. They burgled several homes in other states before entering Arizona. At one home they found several guns which they took. After leaving and driving some distance, Chaney decided to re-burgle that home to make sure he did not miss any weapons. Chaney was described as a “gun nut,” who knew quite a bit about them. In New Mexico they were burgling a home when they discovered a late-model black Ford pickup with plates bearing the letters WMD. They transferred their booty to the truck and left their own vehicle somewhere in New Mexico.
They entered Arizona as the 1982 Labor Day Holiday began. They heard that DPS [Department of Public Safety] was setting up roadblocks to check for drunk drivers and they did not want to be stopped, so they decided to find a rural area and camp until the holiday was over. Later, a Coconino County sheriff’s deputy saw them and, because it was unusual to see people camping there, he decided to investigate. As the deputy approached the campsite, he called in the description of the vehicle and its plates. He drove up behind the pickup and he exited his vehicle. He asked Chaney for identification, and Chaney said it was in his truck and that he would retrieve it. The deputy talked to Deanna and suddenly Chaney was back with a gun pointed at the deputy’s head. Deanna took the deputy’s side arm. Chaney told Deanna to give him the AR-15 rifle (the civilian version of the M-16). While Chaney was pointing the rifle at the deputy, he told the deputy to kneel. The deputy complied and, in fear of losing his life, began talking to Chaney in hopes of avoiding death. He told Chaney about his family and also that Chaney could handcuff him to a tree and thereby escape.
While this was going on, the dispatcher determined that the pickup was stolen and tried to inform the deputy. When there was no answer, the dispatcher called a second officer, who would be the victim, to investigate. Because the area is rural, there was some difficulty in locating the first deputy’s exact position. Chaney, who said he needed “more control” of the situation, handcuffed the first deputy to the tree, told Deanna to disable the two-way radio in the deputy’s vehicle, and took its keys. Chaney and Deanna drove off. When he felt it was safe, the deputy took out a spare key and unhandcuffed himself and ran to the radio.
At the same time, the victim was progressing slowly up the dirt road, checking areas along the way. Suddenly he saw Chaney’s vehicle. He called in and asked, “Black Ford pickup?” Chaney stopped his vehicle, jumped out with the AR-15 in hand and fired it while advancing on the deputy’s vehicle. The first deputy was talking with the dispatcher describing the assailants when he heard the gunfire; he grabbed his shotgun and ran towards the gunfire. The victim threw himself to the seat to avoid the bullets as Chaney began firing. Over thirty bullets were fired. Glass and other debris were flying around the vehicle and over two hundred objects struck the deputy. One of the bullets nearly severed the deputy’s left arm. Finally, Chaney was within nine feet of the deputy and to his rear. Chaney fired again, leaving powder burns on the victim’s body.
Anthony Chaney returned to the truck, and he told Deanna: “Murder One” and “reload.” As they were leaving, Deanna saw the victim try to drive his car, but he could not. The victim, who was a doctor and only a part-time deputy, was conscious for about thirty minutes after the attack. When the medics arrived he told them: “I’m dying, I’m dying” and “I can’t breathe.”
Chaney saw two boys in another pickup later in the same general area. He decided to take their pickup because the police had a description of his. Deanna went to the passenger window of the boys’ pickup and began talking with them. Chaney came up to the driver’s side, pointed his gun at the driver and told the boys to get out. They were told to kneel next to the truck. After transferring their booty, Chaney told the boys to run. They did but dodged behind trees when they could because both feared a bullet in the back. Before telling the boys to run, Chaney told them that he had handcuffed one deputy to a tree and had shot another.
Anthony Chaney headed to Flagstaff to put gas in the pickup he had just stolen. Within minutes the police were in contact with the boys and sent out a description of the new vehicle. In Flagstaff the police spotted the vehicle but hoped to allow Chaney to leave Flagstaff before attempting an arrest. There were many police cars in the area and Chaney remarked that he was in their midst and they did not realize it. Soon the police realized that surprise was gone and they moved in. After arrest, Chaney asked how the deputy was doing, to which the arresting officer said “shut up.”