Elizabeth King

1. Elizabeth King Presentations submitted in fulfillment of Master of Arts Degree from Siena Heights University

2. Written by Steven H. Gettinger • Each chapter tells the story of one man sentenced to death in the United States. • Luis Jose Monge • Charles Proffitt • Richard Hager • James David Raulerson • Steven Gettinger is a reporter who interviewed these men in order to write this book. • Each story gives Background on the prisoner Details of the crime Insight into various aspects of the death penalty • At the time of publication, only one of the inmates, Luis Jose Monge, had been executed. To learn of their fate, I searched the internet to find records of the remaining seven men. • George Vasil • Clifford Hallman • Jessie Lewis Pulliam • Ronald O’Bryan Elizabeth Sizemore Book Talk 1 Siena Heights University June 20, 2007 History and Philosophy of Ideas Overview Sentenced to Die

3. Return of the Executioner History of punishment by death (very brief) Began in Exodus with “an eye for an eye” This meant that the punishment must fit the crime Code of Hammurabi (1750 BC) Gave the power to punish crime to the newly forming government – taking it away from the victim. Henry VIII is credited with the deaths of some 72,000 people during his reign Common methods were boiling, burning at the stake, hanging, beheading, and drawing and quartering. Capital offenses included marrying a Jew, not confessing to a crime, and treason. The first recorded execution in the new colonial America was that of Captain George Kendall in the Jamestown colony of Virginia in 1608. 1834, Pennsylvania became the first state to move executions away from the public eye and into correctional facilities. 1846 - Michigan became the first state to abolish the death penalty for all crimes except treason No executions occurred in the United States from 1967 ~ 1977. This ended with the firing squad death of Gary Gilmore in Utah. That same year Utah was the first state to adopt the lethal injection method of capital punishment Crime He was caught by family members molesting his daughters. He reacted by killing his wife and three of his children He had planned to murder the whole family and himself but could not bring himself to follow through. Chapter 1 This is my Time Luis Jose Monge • Profile • Born in Puerto Rico in 1918 • Parents died when he was 11 • Sent to Brooklyn, NY to live with various relatives • Quit school after the 10th grade • Joined Army Air Corps in 1940 • Married Delores Milta in 1944 • Settled in Denver • Fathered seven boys and two girls • Worked as a door to door salesman • Suffered from severe asthma Note: Luis was told that he would be given a stay of execution if he would only request it. He did not. The remaining members of his family stated their devoted love and forgiveness to their dad all the years of his incarceration.

4. The New Death Penalty 1972 many states adopted new laws governing what types of murder could be punished with the death penalty. Mass murders or situations where the lives of many people were threatened Murder committed to escape from imprisonment or lawful custody Assassinations or killing to hinder government functions Killing for money or hiring others to kill Murder by prisoner serving life term “Especially heinous, atrocious, or cruel killings” Killings that take place during the commission of another felony Tried to rule out acts of passion Established separate trial for sentencing Crime Broke into a stranger, Joel Medgebow’s, home at night and while he slept, Proffitt stabbed Joel to death with a butcher knife. Punched his wife three times in the face but did not kill her Chapter 2 The Empty Chair Charles Proffitt • Profile • Hard worker (according to his wife) • Married • Lost his only child to illness at infancy • Heavy drinker • Often suffered severe headaches

5. Waiting for the Needle Explains in detail the procedures for inducing death through legal injection and electrocution “Whether the condemned man is dragged to the execution chamber kicking or screaming, or rushes there to kiss the electric chair (as on Florida inmate did) makes little difference in the end. Almost everything will proceed exactly the same in any case. His last moments will be as rigid as the election of the pope. Executions are highly stylized rituals …” Crime Killed his friend Tommy Hughes Richard Hagar and his second wife had recently divorced He was living with his new girlfriend. Sent Tommy over to check on his wife They started a physical relationship Richard found out one day and returned to the home to also have physical relations with his ex-wife Tommy came over during the act The two men had an argument, but soon Tommy waited in the other room for Richard and his wife to finish Then the two men left and picked up a third friend. They picked up some beer and went to a secluded spot on the banks of the Great Salt River Richard shot Tommy first in the groin, then a few times in his body, and finally three times in his head. Chapter 3 The Road to Glory Row Richard Hager • Profile • Charismatic • Often told many colorful stories (tall tales) • Persuasive • Intelligent • Joined Army • Went AWOL • High school drop-out • Previous trouble with the law • Married and divorced twice Oklahoma Case Law – HAGER v. STATE, 1983 On appeal, this Court reversed and remanded for a new trial. … At the conclusion of the second stage of the trial, the jury was unable to reach a unanimous verdict, and the trial judge imposed a sentence of life imprisonment.

6. The Social Issue: Protection Debates both sides of the question, “Is capital punishment socially useful?” Focuses on three topics Deterrence Will executing some murders frighten other killers out of committing violent crimes? Incapacitation Is it necessary to execute a murder to keep him from killing again? Expense Does execution save tax payers a significant amount of money? Crime Killed a Georgia police officer during the robbery of a restaurant Chapter 4 I Never Stopped to Think James David Raulerson • Profile • Born David Allen Scott • Unofficially adopted by Dennis Raulerson • They ran a restaurant in Ohio • Dennis was killed by an armed robber of the restaurant • James David moved to Georgia • He married Kate • They had a baby girl in February 1974 • A few months later, he could not support the family and started to commit burglaries • He used the extra money to buy a service station for his brother. Lethal Injection Death Penalty News Alabama, Penn., Texas, Florida, Arizona Fri. 9 Jul 1999 James David Raulerson, 33, executed Jan. 30, 1985, for gunning down Jacksonville Police Officer Michael Stewart on April 27, 1975.

7. Chapter 5 The Youngest Person on Death Row Crime Killed Peggy Pitzer (7th grader) George saw her walking in Oleander Park He ran up behind her with a knife Took her to a secluded area in the woods Told her to undress He tried to rape her but could not perform Frustrated, he ripped her panties When she tried to scream, he gagged her with the underwear He then hit her in the head with a rock and stabbed her between the legs with the knife She died of suffocation The Moral Issue: The Value of Life Question Does the death penalty enhance the value of life or demean it? Answer You choose Justice – Does the murderer deserve to die and only death will suffice? Is life an inalienable right not subject to the judgment of man and therefore, never justified? Name: George Vasil • Profile • 15 years old in 1974 • Was in 10th grade in public school • Lived in Fort Pierce, Florida • Only child (adopted) • Quiet, keep to himself • Played tennis and YMCA football • His dad owned the Putt Putt Mini Golf • George was an avid mini golfer State of Florida vs. Vasil 1979: Reduced to life sentence

8. Crime At a bar, he slashed the throat of the bar maid, Roxanne Mary Monroe, two times with a broken beer bottle She was taken to the Emergency Room with one 5½” and one 1½” gash across her throat Nurses stitched up the wound around 4:30pm At 7pm, a nurse noticed Roxanne lying on a cot in the ER, not breathing The Doctor cut a hole in her throat and she began to breathe again Loss of oxygen caused brain damage She died four days later The Legal Issue: Reasonable Doubt Can an innocent individual be sentenced to die? Are the everyday workings of the legal system infallible? Example Case in Texas where two men where accused of 1st Degree Murder for the same crime. The victim's boyfriend was charged with hiring a bodyguard to kill the woman They both plead innocent The boyfriend was found guilty and sentenced to death The security guard was set free One verdict must be wrong. Chapter 6 It Could Have Gone Either Way Name: Clifford Hallman • Profile • 23 years old in 1973 • Third of six children • Grew up in Tampa, Florida • Father was an alcoholic • Partially deaf • Dropped out of school in the 10th grade • Married in March 1973 • Quit his old job to start a new one the day of the crime Commutations in Capital Cases On Humanitarian Grounds 1979: Clifford Hallman granted clemency on the grounds that the death sentence was inappropriate for the crime. Note The Hospital settled with the estate of Roxanne Monroe in response to a wrongful death malpractice suit. Her son was awarded $42,000. The doctor stated that Hallman’s wound would not have killed her if given proper treatment.

9. Crime Occurred in Troup County, Georgia 1975 Jessie and Johnny took a cab from Alabama to Georgia According to the cab driver’s account, Jessie was going to shoot the cab driver, but he lost his nerve Tommy took the gun and shot from the back seat The bullet severed the driver’s spinal cord They took $16 and left him for dead Ten days later, he went in for surgery to have the bullet removed He died during surgery The Discrimination Issue: Race [I chose to use the statistics from the book (1979)] Number of deaths avenged by execution 50% of those murdered are black 87% of those on death row were sent there for killing whites Common for a black to kill a black but rare for a jury to sentence him to death. When a black killed a white, the punishment most often handed down was the severest available In 1978, 104/113 inmates on Florida death row were sent there for killing whites Pulliam, Jessie L. STATE OF GEORGIA - INCARCERATION HISTORY INCARCERATION BEGIN INCARCERATION END 03/10/1976  03/18/1994  Chapter 7 Death of a White Cab Driver Name: Jessie Lewis Pulliam • Profile • Epileptic • Black • Poor • Very little education • Dropped out of school in the 10th grade at age 17 • Illiterate • At age 22 was working at a car wash • Hung out with a 15 year old boy, Johnny Wilson

10. Crime Houston, Texas 1974 Convicted of the murder of his son, Timothy On Halloween, Tommy die of potassium cyanide poisoning He ingested the cyanide after eating a pixy stick The motive was insurance money Ronald always proclaimed his innocence He was convicted on overwhelming circumstantial evidence The Conclusion: Punishing Murder Does capital punishment protect us? The Supreme Court states, “ Some crimes themselves are so grievous an affront to humanity that the only adequate response may be the penalty of death.” However, justice requires equity, fairness, and consistency It can be said that the 1% of murders who receive the death sentence are not the worst of the bunch, just the unluckiest. Executed 03/31/1984 Chapter 8 The Man Who Killed Halloween Name: Ronald O’Bryan • Profile • Married to Sheila • Two kids, Tim and Nancy Starr • Very active in church • Had moderate financial trouble • President of the P.T.O. • Treasurer of the Kiwanis Club • Worked consistently but had 21 jobs over a few years time