Dalton Prejean Executed For Louisiana Officers Murder

Dalton Prejean was a teen killer who would be executed by the State of Louisiana for the murder of Louisiana State Police Trooper Donald Cleveland

According to court documents Dalton Prejean, 17, was released from a youth facility after serving time for the murder of a cab driver. Seven months later Prejean was pulled over by Louisiana State Police Trooper Donald Cleveland on a traffic stop. When the Officer was searching Prejean brother Dalton would walk up behind him and fatally shot him

Dalton Prejean would be arrested, convicted and sentenced to death

Dalton Prejean would be executed by way of the electric chair on May 18 1990

Dalton Prejean Photos

Dalton Prejean - Louisiana

Dalton Prejean Case

Dalton Prejean, the mildly retarded convict sentenced to death for killing a state trooper, was electrocuted early Friday and became the third inmate executed in the United States in just over 24 hours.

Prejean, 30, was led into the execution chamber at Louisiana State Penitentiary shortly before midnight, strapped into the electric chair and declared dead by prison doctors at 12:17 a.m. CDT, prison officials said.

Before the execution, Prejean told witnesses that family members of slain State Trooper Donald Cleveland ‘say it wasn’t for the revenge, but it’s hard for me to see, to understand. I hope they’re happy.’

‘So, I forfeit my life,’ Prejean said. ‘I give my love to all. God bless.’

After the 3-minute speech, Prejean was led to the electric chair. His eyes were puffy and he appeared distressed. He relaxed after about a minute, but he grimaced as his head was strapped against the chair.

The U.S. Supreme Court late Thursday denied Prejean’s application for a stay, clearing the way for his execution for the 1977 killing of the Louisiana state trooper.

Amnesty International and other rights groups campaigned vigorously against the execution because Prejean was 17 at the time of the killing and psychiatrists testified he was brain-damaged and had the IQ of a 13-year-old.

On Thursday, 13 protesters with Amnesty International and Pilgrimage for Life picketed on the steps of the State Capitol, chanting ‘We Shall Overcome’ and asking Gov. Buddy Roemer to spare Prejean’s life.

Roemer refused to halt Prejean’s execution, the nation’s third execution in just over 24 hours.

At 12:30 a.m. Thursday, Johnny Ray Anderson was put to death by injection in Texas for killing brother-in-law Ronald Gene Goode in a 1981 insurance scam.

About 21 minutes earlier, Leonard Laws died, also by injection, in Missouri for the 1980 shotgun murders of Clarence Williams, 83, and his wife, Lottie, 72, in Glencoe.

Prejean’s execution was the 128th in the United States since 1976, when the Supreme Court lifted its ban on capital punishment. He was the first person executed in Louisiana since Edward Byrne Jr. was put to death June 14, 1988

On behalf of 700 state troopers, he’s going to be executed,’ Roemer said Thursday. ‘He’s been given 10, 12 years of review, review, review, review. He’s guilty. He made a mistake this time — big time.’

Prejean was sentenced in 1978 for the July 2, 1977, murder of Cleveland, who was shot in the face and chest after stopping his car for a traffic violation near Lafayette. He has been on death row 12 years, longer than any other Louisiana inmate.

Prejean was 17 when he killed Cleveland as the officer held his brother against the car. Six months earlier, Prejean was discharged from a juvenile detention facility where he had been serving time for killing a cab driver during a robbery at the age of 14.

He escaped six previous execution dates, including two last fall when he obtained stays within 12 hours of his scheduled electrocution.

In their last arguments before the Supreme Court, defense attorneys said Prejean did not have a proper psychiatric evaluation and did not have effective counsel at his trial.

A psychiatric evaluation obtained by the defense showed Prejean had brain damage and the IQ of a 13-year-old, said attorney Sam Dalton.

Prejean arranged to spend his last day visiting with family members, said Louisiana State Penitentiary Warden John Whitley.

‘We’re expecting his mother and son, and some religious advisers,’ Whitley said. ‘Right now, he’s relatively calm.’

Prejean was moved to the cinderblock death cell on the sprawling prison grounds Thursday morning.

For his last meal, he ordered a seafood platter and an orange soda.

Prejean said his impending execution was a ‘political thing or a racist thing.’

‘He was a police officer,’ Prejean told the Shreveport Times. ‘They put it like he was more than a human being. A life is a life either way you look at it. They have made it more than that.’

He said his death would not ease the pain for Cleveland’s widow and children.

‘The reality still remains the same. They’re not going to feel any better,’ Prejean said. ‘All it boils down to is a revenge….’

A Baton Rouge newspaper reported receiving more than 350 letters from people around the world, asking Roemer to halt the execution on humanitarian grounds. Many of the letters said Prejean should not be executed because he was 17 at the time of Cleveland’s murder.

On Wednesday, a man who identified himself as a member of Amnesty International was twice herded out of the State Capitol by three state troopers, after demanding to discuss Prejean’s case with lawmakers

https://www.upi.com/Archives/1990/05/18/Cop-killer-dies-in-Louisiana-electric-chair/6943643003200/

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Andrew Jones Executed For Tumekica Jackson Murder

Andrew Jones was executed by the State of Louisiana for the murder of eleven year old Tumekica Jackson

According to court documents Andrew Jones would abduct eleven year old Tumekica Jackson from her home. Jones who was in an on and off again relationship with Tumekica Jackson mother would sexually assault and murder the child

Andrew Jones would be arrested, convicted and sentenced to death

Andrew Jones would be executed by way of the electric chair on July 22 1991

Andrew Jones Case

Andrew Lee ‘Flash’ Jones was electrocuted early Monday for the 1984 kidnap, rape and murder of the 11-year-old daughter of his former girlfriend.

Jones, 35, died in the electric chair at the Louisiana State Penitentiary at Angola at 12:10 a.m., said Warden John Whitley.

The execution was carried out less than four hours after the state received notice from the Supreme Court that Jones’ final appeal had been rejected. It was Jones’ 10th sentencing date.

It was the first execution in Louisiana since Dalton Prejean was electrocuted May 18, 1990, for killing a state trooper.

Jones is the 20th killer put to death in the Louisiana electric chair since executions resumed in 1983. He could be the last to be electrocuted in the state, since executions after Sept. 15 will be carried out by lethal injection.

Two of the 33 remaining inmates on death row have execution dates before Sept. 15 — Robert Sawyer is scheduled to die Aug. 22 and Tracy Lee is scheduled to be executed Aug. 26. It is the sixth sentencing date for Sawyer, the second for Lee.

Earlier in the day, attorneys on both sides of the case met a final time with Gov. Buddy Roemer in Baton Rouge. The governor, who had rejected a Pardon Board recommendation to postpone the sentence until after Sept. 15, stood by his refusal to grant clemency to Jones

‘This man’s justice day has arrived,’ Roemer had said in rejecting the Pardon Board recommendation. ‘He kidnapped, molested, beat, raped and strangled an 11-year-old child. Prior to that, he had been convicted of aggravated battery, which had been reduced from aggravated rape. He has a violent history. His day of justice has come. This man deserves what he is about to get.’

Andrew Jones claimed he was drunk the night of Feb. 17, 1984, when Tumekica Jackson was kidnapped from her bedroom in her grandparents’ home. Her body was found in a canal 15 hours after her grandparents reported her missing.

Prosecutor John Sinquefield, an assistant district attorney for East Baton Rouge Parish, said Jones assaulted and murdered the girl in an act of vindictiveness because of an argument with her mother.

In a last-ditch attempt at blocking the execution, Jones’ attorneys argued he was medicated before, during and after his trial with an anti- psychotic drug. They said that should have indicated mental problems that could explain why he killed the girl.

They also argued the state’s decision to replace electrocution with lethal injection was evidence the electric chair is cruel and unusual punishment.

Jones was the 149th person to be put to death since a 1976 Supreme Court ruling allowed states to resume executions.

https://www.upi.com/Archives/1991/07/22/Killer-Flash-Jones-electrocuted-in-Louisiana/8518680155200/

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Thomas Ward Executed For Wilbert John Spencer Murder

Thomas Ward was executed by the State of Louisiana for the murder of Wilbert John Spencer

According to court documents Thomas Ward would serve sixty days in jail for the abuse of his daughter. Ward would travel to the home of Wilbert John Spencer where his estrange wife was staying. Ward would visit with his kids before leaving however would return the next morning. After visiting with his children he would go into the bedroom of Wilbert John Spencer and fatally shoot him

Thomas Ward would be arrested, convicted and sentenced to death

Thomas Ward would be executed by lethal injection on May 16 1995

Thomas Ward Case

On the night of June 22, 1983, Thomas Ward claims to have arrived in New Orleans from California by bus. He took a taxi to 926 Hagin Street. The house belonged to Lydia and John Spencer, the mother and stepfather of the defendant’s wife. Ward’s wife and children were also staying at the house. Ward was allowed into the house to visit his children. He asked and was allowed to bathe and freshen up. Ward testified that in a later conversation he learned that his wife had begun receiving welfare and the family was having some trouble with one of the daughters. The defendant claims this upset him, but rather than saying or doing anything rash, he left the house.

Ward testified that he then went to a local bar where he drank vodka and beer and “hit up” with cocaine. He then went back to the Hagin Street house, at approximately 5:30 a.m., asking to see his children one last time.

After visiting with the children he gave his wife his address and phone number in New York, then went into the bedroom of his wife’s mother and stepfather. He pulled out a gun, pointed at the victim, John Spencer, and said, “I am sorry, John, I have to kill you.” He then fatally shot the victim once at close range. As Lydia Spencer reached for her husband, the defendant shot her in the stomach. When she turned around, he shot her in the back. Lydia Spencer ran for the door, trying to get out of the house. The defendant followed her, striking her with three more shots. Linda Ward and her brother, Ernest Scott, heard the shooting and ran from the house to get help from the neighbors.

The defendant testified in the penalty phase to only remembering being in the house, then being on the street corner, surrounded by police officers. He said he took more cocaine at the time, fearing the police would catch him with it. Ward walked up to the police officers, ostensibly to turn himself in. The police did not at first seize Ward, not yet knowing he was the alleged murderer. Ward claims the police shooed him away because he was drunk. After further investigation at the scene the police realized who Ward was and arrested him.

https://law.justia.com/cases/louisiana/supreme-court/1986/85-ka-0933-1.html

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Antonio James Executed For Henry Silver Murder

Antonio James was executed by the State of Louisiana for the murder of Henry Silver

According to court documents Antonio James would rob seventy year old Henry Silver as he was getting out of his vehicle. James would shoot Henry Silver before robbing him. Silver would die in the hospital a few hours later

Antonio James would be arrested, convicted and sentenced to death

Antonio James would be executed by lethal injection on March 1 1996

Antonio James Case

A man who had avoided execution 13 times in his 14 years on death row was executed by injection early today for killing an elderly man in a 1979 robbery.

The prisoner, Antonio James, 42, had waited longer for his execution than any other prisoner still on the state’s death row. Mr. James was sentenced to die in 1982 for the murder of Henry Silver, 70, on New Year’s Day 1979 in New Orleans.

He had also been sentenced to life in prison for the robbery and murder of Alvin Adams on Jan. 23, 1979. Mr. James was captured in May 1979 after another robbery victim grabbed his gun and wounded him in the leg.

In appeals over the years, defense lawyers complained of ineffective counsel, no money to investigate the crimes and prosecutorial misconduct. They said Mr. James was retarded, had used drugs and had a deprived childhood in the housing projects of New Orleans

Lawyers also had five prison witnesses who said Mr. James’s accomplice had admitted firing the gun and killing Mr. Silver. The accomplice, Levon Price, received a suspended sentence after testifying that he had watched from a getaway car while Mr. James shot Mr. Silver.

The execution was the first here since the movie “Dead Man Walking” was released this winter. The movie was partly filmed at the Angola penitentiary and focused attention on executions in Louisiana.

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John Brown Executed For Omer Laughlin Murder

John Brown was executed by the State of Louisiana for the murder of Omer Laughlin

According to court documents John Brown would mug Omer Laughlin on the streets of New Orleans and would fatally stab the man to death

John Brown would be arrested, convicted and sentenced to death

John Brown would be executed by lethal injection on April 24 1997

John Brown was featured on the prison documentary “The Farm: Angola USA”

John Brown Photos

john brown louisiana

John Brown Case

The state established the following facts through the evidence it presented at the trial. On the night of the murder, Mr. Laughlin and his wife had eaten dinner at a restaurant near the corner of Dauphine and Touro Streets in New Orleans. At approximately 11:45 p.m., they left the restaurant and began walking to their car, which was located about a block away. The defendant exited a nearby vehicle and confronted the Laughlins. He pinned them against their car, and demanded money from Mr. Laughlin. Mrs. Laughlin screamed and ran back toward the restaurant. When she returned to the scene a short time later, her husband was dead. According to a New Orleans police officer who had arrived at the location, the victim was found lying “face down in the street, bleeding profusely.” An autopsy later revealed that Mr. Laughlin had been stabbed thirteen times.

Mrs. Laughlin provided the police with a description of the perpetrator and the vehicle which she had seen him get out of prior to the attack. She also told police that a woman with dark hair had been driving that car.

Sgt. James Scott of the New Orleans Police Department was stopped at a traffic light on Franklin Avenue when he heard the description of the crime and the suspect being broadcast over the police radio. He looked to his left and saw defendant sitting in a vehicle that matched the description given by the victim’s wife. There was a female at the wheel of the car. Defendant’s vehicle pulled into a nearby service station, and Sgt. Scott followed, believing that the occupants of the car might be the suspects being sought. The officer watched as the woman put gasoline in the car while defendant walked over to a water hose and began washing his hands. Defendant then re-entered the car.

Sgt. Scott approached the vehicle and ordered the defendant to step out and place his hands on the hood of the car. When Brown did so, the police officer observed scratches, marks and droplets of blood on Brown’s forearms. He also observed blood between defendant’s toes, which were visible through the sandals that he was wearing. In plain view on the floor of the car was a New Orleans shopper’s card which belonged to the victim.

Defendant was arrested and taken into custody. A search of the vehicle pursuant to routine police procedure yielded Mr. Laughlin’s wallet. A second search pursuant to a properly secured warrant led to the discovery of a Bowie knife which had been concealed underneath the front seat of the car on the passenger side. Mrs. Laughlin positively identified Brown from lineup photographs as the man who had attacked her husband.

Anna Hardeman, the driver of the vehicle in which Brown was riding at the time of his arrest, was also indicted for first degree murder. Although she was originally charged in the same bill of indictment *103 that named Brown as a defendant, the prosecution severed the charges against her on the date that the case was called to trial, and announced that she would be tried separately. Shortly after Brown was convicted and sentenced to death, Hardeman pled guilty to the amended charge of accessory after the fact to first degree murder, and was sentenced to five years imprisonment at hard labor.

https://law.justia.com/cases/louisiana/supreme-court/1987/86-ka-1941-1.html

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