Ga. execution would be first since Supreme Court ruling

[Chris_]

Ga. execution would be first since Supreme Court ruling

ATLANTA (AP) - Georgia moved forward with preparations to execute a convicted killer, who on Tuesday night could become the first inmate put to death since the U.S. Supreme Court upheld the constitutionality of a three-drug lethal injection procedure.
Barring a last-minute reprieve from the courts, William Earl Lynd will be put to death at 7 p.m. Tuesday, making him the first prisoner executed since September, when the high court took up a challenge to lethal injection and effectively halted all executions nationwide for seven months.

The Supreme Court ruled last month in a Kentucky case that the state's method of executing inmates with a three-drug cocktail did not violate the constitutional ban on cruel and unusual punishment. Roughly three dozen states, including Georgia, use a similar method.

Prosecutors in several of those states quickly moved to schedule executions that had been delayed by the court's review. Besides Georgia, Mississippi on Monday scheduled an execution for later this month, while Texas announced plans to put a Mexican-born prisoner to death in August.

Lynd has an appeal pending before the Georgia Supreme Court asking for a stay to consider new forensic medical evidence. His lawyer, Tom Dunn, said he will appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court if the Georgia justices rule against him.

Lynd has already selected his final meal: two pepper jack barbecue burgers with crisp onions; two baked potatoes with sour cream, bacon and cheese; and a strawberry milkshake.

Death penalty opponents planned vigils around Georgia on Tuesday.

"In light of the many well-documented problems with our death penalty system, it is disturbing that Georgia is rushing to lead the country in resuming the death penalty machinery," said Laura Moye, chairwoman of Georgians for Alternatives to the Death Penalty.

Lynd, now 53, was sentenced to die for kidnapping and shooting his live-in girlfriend, Ginger Moore, 26, in south Georgia in 1988, after the two consumed Valium, marijuana and alcohol. Prosecutors said she suffered a slow, agonizing death, regaining consciousness twice after being shot in the head.

The five-member Georgia Board of Pardons and Paroles on Monday rejected Lynd's clemency appeal without comment.

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IMO, the DP should be painful. 

[DixieBelle]

As I have done for other Death Row scum, I will post a little bit more about their heinous crimes and about the victim.

I hope he rots in hell. He's been on death row for almost TWENTY years!

http://law.ga.gov/00/press_print/0,2669,87670814_87670929_111898259,00.html

Lynd’s Crimes

On December 23, 1988, Lynd murdered his girlfriend, Ginger Moore, in Berrien County, Georgia, by shooting her three times in the face and head with a .32 caliber derringer. Prior to the shooting, Lynd and the victim lived together in the victim’s home.

Lynd told the Berrien County Sheriff that, on the day of the victim’s death, he and the victim had taken a drive and were apparently going to take a vacation together; however, they argued and returned home. When the victim and Lynd got home, they argued again and Lynd got his pistol and shot the victim in the face.  The unconscious victim fell across the waterbed.

Lynd went outside, sat on the front porch, and smoked a cigarette. The victim eventually regained consciousness and staggered outside toward Lynd.  Lynd turned and shot the victim a second time and the victim collapsed onto the porch. Lynd put the victim into the trunk of her blue Spectrum automobile and drove away from the house. 

Lynd drove to an old farmhouse in Berrien County and after parking his car, reclined in the driver’s seat and dozed for a few minutes. Lynd then heard the victim kicking the inside of the trunk. Sheriff Brogdon testified that Lynd told him, with clinched fists, that he was “tired of that ******* bitch thumping around in the car,” so Lynd opened the trunk and shot the victim a third and final time. 

Lynd closed the trunk and drove back to the house. Lynd gathered up all the bloodied items in the house and put them in the front seat of the car and drove off.  Lynd stopped the car along I-75, slept for awhile and when he awakened, continued driving until he spotted a farm located near Tifton, Georgia.  Lynd dug a shallow grave there and buried the victim’s body. 

Lynd got back in his car and continued to drive, picking up a hitchhiker in Atlanta.  The hitchhiker drove the Spectrum for a while, allowing Lynd to sleep.  After the hitchhiker got out in West Virginia, Lynd drove on to Ohio. 

When driving through Ohio, Lynd attacked and murdered another woman, Leslie Joan Sharkey. Lynd was able to convince Ms. Sharkey that her car was damaged when he flashed his headlights at her.  When Ms. Sharkey pulled her car over to the side of the road, Lynd attacked her and shot her three times with the .32 caliber pistol. Ms. Sharkey was able to drive away and get medical attention. While she was being treated in the emergency room, she gave a full account of the incident to Ohio police officers. However, Ms. Sharkey died a few days after she was shot. 

Additionally, a month prior to the victim’s murder, Lynd sexually assaulted another woman whom he convinced to get into his car after telling her that her car was damaged. Similar to the murder of Ms. Sharkey, Lynd was able to convince this woman to pull her car over after he flashed his headlights at her. 

While in Ohio, Lynd sold the murder weapon, a .32 caliber Davis Industries derringer, to Mr. Billy George Blevins for twenty dollars. Blevins testified that he bought the gun from Lynd on December 26, 1991, when Lynd came into his bar to have a drink.  Georgia Bureau of Investigation firearms expert Kelly Fite was able to determine that the bullets fired into the victim matched those test fired from the derringer. 

After selling the derringer, Lynd then drove to Florida where he abandoned the victim’s car. Florida officials were able to locate the car and process it for evidence.  AB type blood was discovered in the trunk, on the rear tail light, and in the front passenger compartment of the car.  Bloody items, such as the comforter from the victim’s bed, were discovered discarded along the roadside in Dooly County, Georgia.  These items also revealed the presence of AB type blood.  The victim’s blood type was AB.  AB type blood is fairly rare; only four percent of the population has that blood type. 

After discarding most of the evidence against him, Lynd turned himself over to the Berrien County authorities. Lynd’s brother, Greg Lynd, drove him to the Sheriff’s office. 

Forensic pathologist Warren Tillman testified that the victim died as a result of gunshot wounds to the head and face. Dr. Tillman explained that the first shot fired into the victim’s face would not have been fatal.  After the second gunshot wound, which was fired into the victim’s brain, the victim would have been able to regain consciousness and could have moved her arms and legs.  Even after all three shots were fired, the victim may have been able to achieve consciousness for a period of time prior to her death.

[Wretched Excess]

I went googling for the details of the murder, which is pretty much what I do when I read a story about a pending execution, and I ran across this:

Stop the execution of William Lynd!

[DixieBelle]

I went googling for the details of the murder, which is pretty much what I do when I read a story about a pending execution, and I ran across this:

Stop the execution of William Lynd!

Yet oddly, no mention of his crimes.