Harvey Windsor was sentenced to death by the State of Alabama for the murder of Rayford Howard
According to court documents Harvey Windsor would shoot and kill Rayford Howard during a robbery in a store. Following that robbery Harvey would rob another store where he would shoot and kill Randall Earl Pepper
Harvey Windsor would be arrested, convicted and sentenced to death
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| Inmate: | WINDSOR, HARVEY LEE |
| AIS: | 0000Z498 |
| Institution: | HOLMAN PRISON |
Harvey Windsor Case
At trial, the State offered evidence that Harvey Lee Windsor and an accomplice, Colon Lavon Guthrie, robbed two convenience stores. The owner of each store was fatally shot. This appeal addresses Windsor’s conviction for the capital murder of Rayford Howard, who was killed in the first of those two robberies.
The statement of facts set out by the Court of Criminal Appeals in its June 17, 1994, opinion included the following: “On February 25, [1988,] at approximately 2:00 p.m., Rayford Howard was found dead in his store in St. Clair County. He died as a result of a shotgun blast to the chest. Money had been taken from the store’s cash register and the victim’s pants pockets had been emptied. A witness saw someone carrying a `sawed-off shotgun’ leave the victim’s store, open the breach and reload the gun, and get into a black sports car. “On this same day, the appellant and Guthrie were seen in St. Clair County travelling together in a black Ford Mustang automobile with gold stripes and the word `Boss’ written in gold on the sides.
At approximately 1:00 p.m. that day, Harvey Windsor and Guthrie had visited Sammie Sue Wilson Osborne at her house. Ms. Osborne’s house was located approximately five miles from Rayford Howard’s store. “The automobile in which the appellant was riding was seen later that afternoon travelling at a high rate of speed in Marshall County and in Lawrence County. The automobile was also seen at Tommy’s Store, a convenience store, in Lawrence County. An occupant of the car discarded two Budweiser beer cans in the parking lot of Tommy’s Store. “The automobile was also seen at approximately 8:00 p.m. at a store in Colbert County.
The attendant at the Colbert County store, Randall Earl Pepper, was killed by a shotgun blast to the head. The appellant was identified as the person running from the store and getting into the automobile. When the appellant was arrested, he had in his possession a .25 caliber automatic pistol that had belonged to Mr. Pepper. “The automobile in which the appellant and Guthrie were travelling had been stolen on February 23, 1988, from Connie’s Quick Stop convenience store in Tiftonia, Tennessee.
The automobile was recovered on February 26, at Tiftonia Baptist Church, two-tenths of a mile from Connie’s Quick Stop. Guthrie’s sister’s house was located between Connie’s Quick Stop and the Tiftonia Baptist Church. “When the automobile was searched, the following items were recovered: a ring of keys, a receipt from Parisian department store, a 20-gauge shotgun shell, and cigarette butts. One of the keys on the recovered ring opened a padlock that secured the rear door of Howard’s store. The Parisian receipt was for a suit that Mr. Howard had purchased for his wife. The 20-gauge shotgun shell had been fired from the same gun as a shell that was recovered outside Howard’s store. The appellant’s fingerprint was found on one of the cigarette butts. “Additionally, Guthrie’s fingerprints were found on Mr. Howard’s driver’s license, which was recovered, along with his wallet and its contents, beside the road a few miles from his store. Guthrie’s fingerprints were also found on one of the Budweiser beer cans that were left at Tommy’s Store in Lawrence County.”
https://law.justia.com/cases/alabama/supreme-court/1996/1931643-1.html