A South Carolina A death row inmate scheduled to be executed later this month is asking the state Supreme Court to delay his execution to allow his lawyers to argue that his co-defendant who testified against him lied about not having a plea deal in exchange for his testimony. was
Freddie Eugene Owens, 46, will be executed Sept. 20 for killing store clerk Irene Graves during a 1997 robbery spree in Greenville. Owens also killed his cellmate in the Greenville County Jail after his conviction in 1999, but before his sentencing.
In addition to arguing over the plea agreement, Owens’ attorneys said in court papers filed Friday that a juror saw an electronic stun device Owens had to wear in court to ensure good behavior and that the judge never addressed why he was required to wear it. , according to Associated Press.
South Carolina is seeking to execute Owens, which would mark the state’s first execution in 13 years after an involuntary pause in recent years in a struggle to obtain lethal injection drugs.
State prosecutors have until Thursday to respond to a request to delay Owens’ execution while he presents new evidence to the judge and seeks a new trial.
Then the bar is usually higher for granting a new trial Death row prisoners End all their appeals. Owens’ lawyers said previous attorneys had carefully investigated his case, but the new evidence only came to light in interviews as his possible execution neared.
Co-defendant Steven Golden testified that Owens shot Graves in the head because she was unable to open the safe at the Greenville store 27 years ago.
The store had surveillance video, but it did not clearly show the shooting. Prosecutors never found the weapon used in the shooting and failed to show any scientific evidence linking Owens to the murder.
Golden told a jury at his 1999 trial that he had no contract with prosecutors and could face the death penalty or life in prison even after testifying.
However, in a sworn statement signed Aug. 22, Golden said he had reached a side deal with prosecutors, an admission Owens’ attorney said could change the minds of jurors who believe his testimony.
“My written plea agreement states that the death penalty and life without parole are still possible outcomes and there is no specific guarantee as to what my sentence will be,” Golden wrote in his statement. “That was not true. We had a verbal agreement that I would not get the death penalty or life without parole.”
Golden was subsequently sentenced to 28 years in prison plead guilty to a lesser charge of voluntary manslaughter, court records show.
Addressing the electronic stun device Owens wore during the trial, Owens’ lawyers said courts have long required judges to explain to juries why defendants wear visible restraints, such as handcuffs, and that the judge should weigh the impact against courtroom security. The device may be on trial right.
Owens’ attorneys said the judge failed to do this at his trial.
Once one of the busiest states for executions, South Carolina has not carried out executions since 2011 due to difficulty obtaining the lethal injection drug after supplies ran out in recent years because of concerns from pharmaceutical companies that they would have to disclose what they sold. Drugs to state officials. But the state legislature last year passed a shield law that allows officials to keep private suppliers of lethal injection drugs.
South Carolina previously used a combination of three drugs, but will now use one drug, the sedative pentobarbital, in the federal government’s protocol for lethal injection.
New options for lethal injection, electrocution and firing squads are expected to be available for Owens’ execution. Owens has until Sept. 6 to choose a method for its implementation. He signed his power of attorney to his lawyer, Emily Pavola, to make that decision for him.
If Owens doesn’t make the decision, he will be sent to the electric chair, and he doesn’t want to die that way, Pavola said. State attorneys have asked the South Carolina Supreme Court to rule on whether Owens’ attorney can make that decision for them.
“Mr. Owens has a long-held religious belief that physically signing the election form plays an active role in his own death and is thus tantamount to suicide. Mr. Owens’ Muslim faith teaches that suicide is a sin and is prohibited,” Pavola wrote in court papers.
The state Supreme Court also said on Friday that it would wait at least five weeks between executions.
The court rejected a request by lawyers of convicted prisoners to fix a three-month gap between executions to relieve pressure on prison staff that could lead to mistakes and give lawyers time to devote time to each inmate’s case specifically.
Instead, the court promised five weeks between executions. Under state law and the timeline first issued when the judges ruled that executions could resume last month, the court can issue execution orders on Fridays of each week if it wishes. Prison officials told the state that four weeks would be acceptable.
There are currently 32 inmates on death row in South Carolina.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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