Michael Land was executed by the State of Alabama for the murder of Candace Brown
According to court documents Michael Land would kidnap Candace Brown from her home and she was brought to a remote quarry where she was shot in the back of the head.
Michael Land would be arrested, convicted and sentenced to death
Michael Land would be executed by lethal injection on August 12 2010
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Michael Land FAQ
When Was Michael Land Executed
Michael Land was executed on August 12 2010
Michael Land Case
An Alabama man had no last words before he was executed Thursday for killing a woman who was abducted from her Birmingham home in 1992. Prison officials declared Michael Jeffrey Land, 41, dead from injection at 6:23 p.m. He was executed less than an hour after the U.S. Supreme Court rejected his final appeal. The Alabama Supreme Court turned down a plea to stop the execution earlier in the afternoon. Asked by Holman Warden Tony Patterson if he had any last words, Land said, “No. Thank you though.”
Land was convicted of capital murder for fatally shooting 30-year-old Candace Brown in the back of the head after cutting her phone line and breaking into and burglarizing her home. Brown’s 2-year-old son, Michael, was left alone in the house when she was abducted and was found unharmed by police the next day. Brown’s body was found later in a quarry on Ruffner Mountain. He had been on death row for 16 years, six months and 23 days.
Michael Brown, now 19, witnessed the execution along with Candace Brown’s parents, John and Brenda Brown, and her three brothers. The Browns did not talk to reporters after the execution. After speaking with the warden, Land lay quietly on the hospital gurney in the death chamber with his arms outstretched. He balled his hands into a fist.
Land spoke quietly to Holman Chaplain Chris Summers, who held his hand and prayed for a few mo ments. When Summers stepped away, Land’s hands relaxed and he seemed to lose consciousness. A guard came over and rubbed Land’s forehead, but he made no response and was pronounced dead minutes later. Land spent much of Thursday visiting with his mother, Gayle Gossett, a former Birmingham police officer; his stepfather, Ellis Gossett; his brother, Jason Land, and his grandfather, Glenn Morrison.
Prisons spokesman Brian Corbett said Land got his last meal out of vending machines at the visitation yard. He ate a meatball sub sandwich, a double pork chop sandwich and a Philly cheesesteak sandwich, with an orange soda and orange juice.
In a lengthy clemency petition, Land’s attorneys had asked Gov. Bob Riley to spare his life because he had turned his life around in prison after a tough childhood marred by mental problems. Since he has been on death row, the petition said, he had earned a GED diploma, created a laundry system and served as a runner, delivering mail, meals and handling other errands.
Assistant Attorney General Clay Crenshaw asked Riley in a letter to reject Land’s plea for clemency “because of the horrible nature of his crime.” Riley agreed, saying he would not alter the decisions of jurors and the courts.
Court files are not clear on exactly why Land targeted Candace Brown, who worked at a financial institution and, according to family members, was taking college courses at Birmingham-Southern College. Land was a casual acquaintance of his daughter but not a friend, John Brown said. Land was moved Tuesday into a holding cell adjacent to the death chamber and just a few yards from the hospital-style gurney where he died, Corbett said.
His attorneys filed final-day petitions with the U.S. Supreme Court and the Alabama Supreme Court, contending he did not receive due process on Wednesday when Riley turned down his request for clemency. Both courts rejected the pleadings after attorneys for the state and Riley said the governor gave full consideration to the request.
https://mycrimelibrary.com/us-executions-2000-to-2010/
