Donald Harding Executed For 2 Arizona Murders

Donald Harding was executed by the State of Arizona for two murders. Harding would murder at least four other people in different States

According to court documents Donald Harding would murder Allen F. Gage in his hotel room in Phoenix Arizona. The victim was bound and had a sock stuffed down his throat which caused his death

Donald Harding would then murder Robert Wise and Martin Concannon. Harding would pose as a security worker for the hotel and gained access to the room. Robert Wise and Martin Concannon would be shot multiple times

Donald Harding would be arrested, convicted and sentenced to death for the Robert Wise and Martin Concannon murders

Donald Harding would be executed by way of the gas chamber. It would take eleven minutes for him to die. The execution was on April 6 1992

Donald Harding Photos

Donald Harding - Arizona

Donald Harding Case

Convicted killer Donald Eugene Harding, 43, was executed in the gas chamber a few minutes after midnight Monday, becoming the first person to be executed in Arizona in 29 years.

Outside the prison about 150 persons held a candle-light vigil to protest the death penalty.

Late Sunday the state Board of Pardons and Parole rejected an eleventh-hour appeal to spare the life of the condemned.

Following a marathon hearing involving testimony from 22 people, most of them death penalty opponents, the seven-member board voted unanimously to let death sentence stand.

Among those pleading for a stay of execution were Harding’s brother, Darryl, and representatives of the Catholic, Methodist and Episcopalian churches.

Representatives of the state attorney general represented the opposite end of the spectrum, urging the Board to allow the 43-year-old Harding to keep his appointment with the gas chamber

Harding was convicted for killing three men during a 1980 crime spree.

The final legal obstacle was an appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court filed by the Arizona state attorney general’s office. Prosecutors challenged a stay of execution issued Thursday night by the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals.

Included among some 10 motions for a stay was newly discovered medical evidence on ‘organic brain syndrome,’ involving possible physical damage to some part of the brain at birth, causing impulsive behavior.

The Supreme Court lifted the stay of execution Saturday, clearing the way for Monday’s execution.

Arizona law required that Harding’s case face a final hearing before the Arizona State Board of Pardons and Parole. The board began a clemency hearing Sunday at 9 a.m. which lasted more than 11 hours.

Sparing Harding’s life required the state board recommending clemency to Gov. Fife Symington, who only then has the authority to suspend Harding’s appointment with the executioner.

The last time Arizona used its gas chamber was March 14, 1963, when convicted murderer Manuel Silvas was put to death.

Currently there are 100 inmates — 99 men and one woman — officially on Arizona’s Death Row, although four are housed in other states.

Harding is not the longest-serving condemned inmate. Others have resided on Death Row since 1976. He just happens to be the first to have exhausted virtually all avenues of appeal.

‘It’s just the way his legal ball bounced through the system,’ said Mike Arra, spokesman for the Arizona Department of Corrections.

On the night of Jan. 24, 1980, Harding, posing as a security guard, entered the Phoenix motel room of Allen Gage, bound the victim’s hands and feet with duct tape and stuffed a gag in his mouth.

Harding took Gage’s wallet, stole his car and drove to Tucson, leaving Gage to die of asphyxiation, face down on the floor.

On the following day, Harding used the same ruse to rob and kill two men in a Tucson motel, tying them up and gagging them, but also shooting both in the back of the head at close range. Killed were Robert Wise and Martin Concannon.

Harding left Gage’s car at the Tucson crime scene. Later that evening, before the bodies were discovered, Harding appeared at Wise’s home in Mesa, knocking on the door and asking Wise’s wife whether Robert Wise was home. Prosecutors speculate Harding then left because Mrs. Wise had a large dog with her

He was arrested in Flagstaff Jan. 26, 1980, in possession of Gage’s wallet and identification and driving Concannon’s car.

Officials at the Arizona State Penitentiary in Florence said they were well-prepared for the execution.

‘The gas chamber has been something that has been steadily maintained over the years by the administration of the state prison at Florence,’ Arra said. ‘As this so-called first execution in almost 30 years has been getting closer, we have been rehearsing, testing, planning, writing procedures.

The job is performed by pulling a lever that drops cyanide pellets into a solution of sulfuric acid in distilled water, located in a small vat directly below the prisoner’s chair, creating a killer dose of cyanide gas.

Under Arizona law, which has not been changed for decades, lethal gas is the only form of capital punishment. A bill in the current session of the Legislature would make lethal injection the preferred method, but even if passed the change would require voter approval in November before becoming law

https://www.upi.com/Archives/1992/04/06/Arizona-holds-first-execution-in-29-years/5497702532800/

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James Clark Executed For 4 Arizona Murders

James Clark was executed by the State of Arizona for four murders

According to court documents James Clark was working on a ranch when he committed the four murders. Clark would first murder George Martin, Jr. and 17- year-old Gerald McFerron who were also employed by the ranch. Clark would then go to the owners home where he would murder Charles and Mildred Thumm. Clark would rob the home before fleeing

James Clark would be executed by lethal injection on April 14 1993

James Clark Photos

James Clark - Arizona

James Clark Case

In 1977, James Dean Clark worked as a ranch hand at the Cochise Guest Lodge and Ranch in Elfrida, Arizona. Elfrida is a small community in southeastern Arizona about 27 miles Northwest of Douglas.

On December 3, 1977 Clark and two other workers at the ranch went to a bar in Elfrida and then to a disco in Douglas. They returned to the ranch around 1 a.m. Later that evening Clark stabbed one wrangler in his bed seven times as he slept and shot the other man three times.

Clark then grabbed a .357 revolver from one of the victim’s and went into the main house killing the ranch owners, Charles and Mildred Thumm.

Clark stole credit cards, jewelry, weapons and a saddle and drove to El Paso, Texas, where he bragged about the murder to a friend.

Clark was arrested in El Paso, telling authorities there that he had permission to use the car to get his girlfriend and bring her back to Arizona.

Police also found a spent bullet in his jacket pocket in his hotel room. The bullet in his pocket was one that had passed through the head of one of his victims.

At the preliminary hearing on December 15, 1977 a confidential informant from the Drug Enforcement Administration testified, over the objections of Clark’s attorneys. The informant wore a ski mask to hide his identity but removed it briefly so Clark could see him.

At trial the informant told the jury that he met Clark at a bar in El Paso and the next day traded him drugs for weapons, including the .357 revolver. The informant said Clark told him that he had killed people in “Elvira” Arizona.

Clark would always contend that the hooded informant was the real killer.

On June 23, 1978 Clark was convicted of first degree murder of the four people. He was sentenced one month later.

https://www.abc15.com/news/crime/death-row-diaries-this-man-keeps-an-unusual-souvenir-while-the-jury-hears-from-a-hooded-witness

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Jimmie Jeffers Executed For Penelope Cheney Murder

Jimmie Jeffers was executed by the State of Arizona for the murder of Penelope Cheney

According to court documents Jimmie Jeffers and Penelope Cheney were arrested for narcotic possession. Cheney would be bailed out and soon after Jeffers learned she was talking to the police. Jeffers attempted to send out a letter arranging her murder but it was intercepted

Once out of jail Jimmie Jeffers would get Penelope Cheney to cover over with the promise of heroin. He attempted to give her a fatal overdose however when that failed he would strangle the woman. Three days later he would burn the body

Jimmie Jeffers would be arrested, convicted and sentenced to death

Jimmie Jeffers would be executed by lethal injection on September 13 1995

Jimmie Jeffers Photos

jimmie jeffers arizona

Jimmie Jeffers Case

In May 1976, Jimmy Wayne Jeffers and his girlfriend, Penelope Cheney, were arrested on narcotics charges and receiving stolen property. Jeffers was able to post bond for Cheney, but not himself and he remained behind bars.

While in jail, Jeffers learned that Cheney was providing police with information about his heroin business. He tried to hire another inmate to kill her, but a correctional officer intercepted his offer letter.

Once Jeffers made bond in October, he was released from the Pima County Jail and plotted to take revenge on his girlfriend.

Jeffers soon met a woman named Doris Van Der Veer, and began living with her in a motel room in Tucson

On October 20, 1976 Jeffers enticed Cheney to his motel room by offering her heroin. When Cheney arrived, Van Der Veer left the motel room, allowing Jeffers to be alone with her. When Van Der Veer returned, she was met by Jeffers who pointed a gun at her and told her to sit down.

Van Der Veer saw Cheney laying on the bed unconscious with foam coming from her mouth. Van Der Veer, a former nurse, recognized the signs of heroin overdose.

Jeffers told her, he had “given her enough (heroin) to kill a horse, and this (girl) still won’t die.”

Jeffers took Cheney’s belt and choked her with it and when Van Der Veer tried to get him to stop, Jeffers said, ”No, I’ve seen her like this before, and she’s come out of it.”

Even after Van Der Veer checked Cheney’s pulse, and confirmed she was dead, Jeffers demanded that Van Der Veer inject her with still more heroin. Jeffers also beat Cheney, calling her names with each blow.

Jeffers put Cheney’s body in the shower stall for three days. After it began to smell, they both wrapped the body in plastic and buried Cheney in a shallow grave in a secluded area near Sedona.

Jeffers was convicted on February 9, 1978 and sentenced to death on April 19, 1978.

Jeffers last meal: After requesting three pounds prime rib, one pound of crab legs and three lobster tails (which DOC considered too extravagant) he was instead given:

10 ounce steak

Peas

Rolls with butter

1 Baked potato with shredded cheddar cheese

Strawberry pie with whipped cream

Large chocolate malt

https://www.abc15.com/news/crime/death-row-diaries-jimmy-wayne-jeffers-made-good-on-jailhouse-plans-to-kill-girlfriend

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Luis Mata Executed For Debra Lopez Murder

Luis Mata was executed by the State of Arizona for the murder of Debra Lopez

According to court documents Luis Mata and his brother Antonio Mata would attack Debra Lopez as she attempted to leave their residence. Debra Lopez would be sexually assaulted before being murdered

Luis Mata would be arrested, convicted and sentenced to death

Luis Mata would be executed by lethal injection on August 22 1996

Luis Mata Photos

Luis Mata - Arizona

Luis Mata Case

In the early morning hours of March 11, 1977, police found the body of Debra Lee Lopez at the side of a road in West Phoenix. The twenty-one year old woman had died as the result of her throat being severed through to the spine. The defendant and his brother Alonzo Mata were arrested and charged with first degree murder. Testimony at trial revealed the following account of the events leading up to the victim’s death.

After an evening out, the Mata brothers were joined by the victim and George Castro Harrange, both acquaintances of the Matas. All four left a neighborhood bar, walked to the Mata’s nearby apartment, and began watching television. According to Castro, the victim got up to leave after about ten minutes, at which point Luis grabbed her by the hair and announced that they were going to rape her. Thereafter, the Mata brothers beat the victim, Luis with his fists and Alonzo with a rifle, and successively raped her.

At one point, Luis and the victim fell off the bed, whereupon Luis picked her up by the hair and beat her head against the cement floor. The victim soon regained consciousness and attempted to run away after Luis announced that they were going to kill her and throw her in the river. A neighbor testified that he heard terrified screams, that he saw Alonzo throw a rifle inside a car, and that another man carried either a person or a box to the car and deposited it in the front seat. The car departed.

According to the confessions of the brothers, after the beatings and rapes, the men drove the then unconscious victim away from the apartment, and Luis killed her at the side of the road by cutting her throat with a knife.

https://law.justia.com/cases/arizona/supreme-court/1996/cr-77-4104-ap-pc-2.html

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Daren Bolton Executed For 2 Arizona Murders

Daren Bolton was executed by the State of Arizona for the murders of two young children

According to court documents Daren Bolton, who was a convicted sex offender, would kidnap Zosha Lee Pickett, 2, from her parents home. The little girl would be sexually assaulted and murdered

Daren Bolton would also kidnap seven year old Cathy Fritz who would also be sexually assaulted and murdered

Bolton was in prison serving time for another kidnapping and sexual assault when he was tied to the murders of Zosha Lee Pickett and Cathy Fritz

Daren Bolton would be convicted and sentenced to death

Daren Bolton would be executed by lethal injection on June 19 1996

Daren Bolton Photos

daren bolton arizona

Daren Bolton Case

On June 27, 1986 a man entered a Tucson home through a bedroom window and kidnapped little Zosha Lee Pickett who was just shy of her third birthday

Her body was found four days later, by some boys playing in the area of an abandoned taxi cab, parked at a nearby storage lot. Her untorn clothing covered the stab wound to her chest, and her underwear was found in another part of the cab.

Fingerprints were found on the screen outside her window and on the outside and the inside of the cab.

Investigators also found a pizza box, cigarette butts and a semen-stained sock. The fingerprints were not able to be linked to any known suspects in the area. So Tucson police sent the fingerprint samples to jurisdictions around the country

Four years later there’s a crazy break in the case. Police in Illinois, training on a new computer system, matched the fingerprints sent to them by Tucson police to Daren Lee Bolton. His fingerprints happened to be on file there because of an arrest in Champaign, Illinois on assault charges in 1984.

Bolton was already in prison on an unrelated sex crime. He was indicted for the kidnapping and murder of Zosha Lee Pickett in February 1991.

The trial: The fingerprints played a large part in the trial. Bolton testified at the trial that he had indeed been at the home. He said he was there with an accomplice, planning to steal drugs. He said they were scared off by the family dog. Bolton claimed it was this accomplice that returned later to kidnap the child. Bolton said he killed the accomplice and dumped his body in the desert.

Bolton also admitted to touching the taxi cab. He said he stole some parts out of it a few days before the murder.

The jury found him guilty of murder with 11 of the 12 jurors believing it was pre-meditated.

During sentencing the prosecution presented evidence saying the victim was alive for some time after being stabbed. Fingerprints were found on the back window of the cab which prosecutors said indicated that she was standing up after being stabbed

The prosecution provided evidence, “that a person with similar injuries to the victim would have suffered ‘excruciating pain’ while she died over a fifteen to thirty minute period.”

The defense contended for leniency on several fronts.

They cited Bolton’s age, he was 19-years-old at the time of the murder.

They cited his abusive childhood, his sister and the psychologists testified that his parents were mentally and physically abusive to Bolton.

The presented the fact that he was in institutions throughout his childhood.

They said Bolton did not understand his conduct would create a grave risk of death.

They argued that his conviction was for felony murder not premeditated murder.

Philip Balch, Ph.D., who examined defendant in 1981 when he was fifteen years old, testified that, “at that time defendant, showed aggressive behavior, difficulty controlling his temper, and impulse control problems.”

Todd Flynn, Ph.D., testified that from his own examination, “Bolton showed no signs of any mental defect, e.g., impaired intelligence, mental retardation, or organic brain dysfunction.”

Bolton always proclaimed his innocence, but never fought his execution and did not attend his clemency hearing.

https://www.abc15.com/news/crime/death-row-diaries-new-technology-and-a-little-luck-used-to-link-daren-bolton-to-a-childs-murder

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