Leroy White was executed by the State of Alabama for the murder of his ex wife Ruby White
According to court documents Leroy White would go over to the home of Ruby White’s sister where he would shoot the sister, who would survive, and shoot Ruby multiple times causing her death
Leroy White would be arrested, convicted and sentenced to death
Leroy White would be executed by lethal injection on January 13 2011
Leroy White Photos
Leroy White FAQ
When Was Leroy White Executed
Leroy White was executed on January 13 2011
Leroy White Case
Leroy White’s wait on death row for killing his estranged wife in 1988 lasted almost three hours longer than expected Thursday night when the U.S. Supreme Court temporarily stopped the execution to review his case before ultimately lifting the stay.
White, 52, was pronounced dead at 9:10 p.m. in the Holman Correctional Facility’s death chamber, about 20 minutes after the injection of a lethal cocktail of drugs began.
White did not make a statement when asked if he had any last words.
White was sentenced to death for the shotgun slaying of his estranged wife, Ruby White, at her Evans Drive home on Oct. 17, 1988.
The execution set for 6 p.m. Thursday started about 8:45 p.m., after the Supreme Court lifted the temporary stay issued by Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas.
White’s attorneys have argued that White did not receive good advice from his trial attorney, who advised him not to take a plea deal that would have meant a life sentence without parole.
Thomas issued the stay for the court to further review the appeal from White’s attorneys.
Brian Corbett, spokesman for the Alabama Department of Corrections, said he doesn’t know why the court lifted the stay because he has not seen the ruling.
Corbett, who has attended more than 20 executions, said the long delay in carrying out White’s sentence is rare.
“This is 20-plus for me and only the second time this has happened,” he said.
White’s request for clemency to Gov. Bob Riley was denied Thursday afternoon. The Alabama Supreme Court also rejected White’s appeal.
The victim’s sister, Stella Lanier Walker, and two sons from a previous marriage signed affidavits asking the courts to spare Leroy White’s life for the sake of his daughter, La Tonya, who was a baby at the time of the shooting.
White was strapped to a gurney with his arms extended and the head of the bed tilted up when the curtain was drawn back in the death chamber.
Holman Warden Tony Patterson read the execution order and asked White if he had any last words. White shook his head “no.”
He waved the fingers on his left hand at friends Jim Douglass and Shelley Douglass, who were the only witnesses to the execution other than reporters and prison officials.
Chris Summers, a Holman chaplain, knelt at the side of the gurney and prayed.
White appeared calm and looked straight up before the drugs took effect, and he looked as if he gently fell asleep.
La Tonya White, the daughter of Leroy and Ruby White, was among family and friends who visited White for most of the day. He left her his legal papers, a Bible, photos, letters and articles of clothing.
Leroy White was holding La Tonya White, who was 17 months old, when he killed Ruby White with multiple shotgun blasts.
White did not request a final meal. He instead bought a cheeseburger, a V8, pork skins, a Yoo-Hoo and coffee from the prison vending machines.
He is the fourth person from Madison County – and first since 1998 – executed since the state took over executions from the counties in 1927. Nine other inmates from Madison County are currently on death row: Nick Acklin, Benito Albarran, James Barber, Anthony Tyson, Jeffery Rieber, Mohammad Sharifi, Jason Sharp, Derrick Mason and Joey Wilson.
https://www.al.com/breaking/2011/01/leroy_white_executed_for_killi.html
