Terry Edwards Execution 2017: Texas Inmate Is First Death Row Prisoner Executed Under Donald Trump's Presidency
A death row murderer was executed Thursday, 14 years after shooting two of his former co-workers at a Dallas, Texas-area Subway in 2002. Terry Edwards, 43, accused of double homicide, died of lethal injection on 10:17 p.m. CST (11:17 p.m. EST) in Huntsville, Texas, at the state's death chamber.
Edwards was relieved of his duties at a Subway outlet in Balch Springs, about 15 miles southeast of Dallas, after he was suspected of stealing from the cash register in 2002. He and his cousin Kirk Edwards were accused of murder of Mickell Goodwin, 26 — an employee at the restaurant — and store manager of the sandwich joint, Tommy Walker, 34, on July 8, 2002. The store was robbed as well. Kirk was identified dumping a gun into a bin across the street. He pleaded guilty of robbery and was sentenced for 25 years. Terry, who had no criminal history, was given the death penalty.
Prosecution proclaimed at the trial that Terry pulled the trigger and that he had gone to his previous workplace "with murder in mind, with greed in mind, with evil in his heart." The defense, however, appealed that his cousin, Kirk, was a more likely suspect. Edwards' attorneys also expressed their doubt over the fairness of the jury selection process. They reportedly said in a statement that prosecutors "removed all eligible African Americans from the jury pool of 3,000 citizens [143 of whom were questioned] and seated an all-white jury to decide the fate of an African American man charged with murdering two white people."
John Mills, one of Edwards' attorneys, also claimed that it looked as if the D.A's office had closed off access to the conviction integrity unit — a branch of the D.A.'s office set up in 2007 to review cases — the Guardian reported. After the Federal fifth circuit appeals court denied Terry's petition Wednesday, his final hope was if the case was reopened under a last day appeal to the Supreme Court. The motion, however, failed.
His execution is the second in Texas this year and the third nationally.
"Yes, I made peace with God. I hope y'all make peace with this," were Edwards' last words.
© Copyright IBTimes 2024. All rights reserved.