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Mississippi man executed for ’95 slayings Recreation complex Lawyers argued Turner was mentally ill, treatment failed talks stalled again;
cost, election cited
By The Associated Press PARCHMAN — A Mississippi man was put to death Wednesday evening for killing two men in a December 1995 robbery spree after the courts declined to stop the execution based on arguments that the inmate was mentally ill at the time. Edwin Hart Turner, 38, died at 6:21 p.m. after receiving a chemical injection at the Mississippi State Penitentiary at Parchman, Edwin Hart authorities Turner said. Turner was convicted of capital murder in the deaths of Eddie Brooks and Everett Curry, who were slain at two gas stations a few miles apart that were targeted by Turner and an armed friend in a spree that netted them about $400. Brooks was shot to death first while working at one of the gas stations and Curry, at the other while pumping gas when the pair went there next, toting rifles. Turner’s accomplice testified against him and was sentenced to life in prison. Wearing a red prison jumpsuit as he lay strapped on a gurney, Turner said, “No” when asked if he had a last statement. When the lethal chemicals began flowing, he closed his eyes, took a deep breath and appeared to fall asleep. The sister and a cousin of victim Eddie Brooks watched the execution. The brother and son of his other victim, Everett Curry, also did. One of Curry’s other brothers read a family statement afterward.
By John Surratt jsurratt@vicksburg post.com Vicksburg Mayor Paul Winfield has pushed back until Monday plans to present a proposal to increase the city’s hotel and food and beverages taxes. Winfield had called a special meeting of the Board of Mayor and Aldermen for today to discuss the bill, but canceled it late Wednesday to give city attorney Lee Davis Thames time to revise the proposed bill. The revisions eliminate the
proposed $20 million ceiling and do not specify a maximum amount. They also reduce the majority of Mayor Paul votes in a Winfield referendum necessary to levy the tax to more than 50 percent instead of 60 percent and make the bill effective on the governor’s signature if it passes. See Recreation, Page A10.
Bond denied for 2 men held in Jackson beating By Pamela Hitchins phitchins@vicksburgpost.com
The associated press
Death penalty opponents brave cooling temperatures to pray for the soul of Edwin Hart Turner Wednesday evening at Mississippi State Penitentiary at Parchman. “I don’t think we will ever have complete closure because a void will always exist in our hearts,” said Roy Curry, who did not watch the execution. “At least we will have some consolation in knowing that the person who committed this cowardly and senseless act is finally gone.” Turner had requested that
none of his family watch the execution, though his attorney and a pastor were present. There was little dispute that Turner killed the two men while robbing gas stations, then went home and had a meal of shrimp and cinnamon rolls before going to sleep. But his lawyers had tried
Bond has been denied for two suspects charged with the brutal beating and robbery of a Warren County man as he worked in Jackson Jan. 29. Jontez Garvis, 29, and David Thomas, 25, both residents of Jackson, continue to be held in the Hinds County Detention Center in Raymond, said Jackson Police Department spokesman
to block the execution in various state and federal courts based on the argument that Turner was mentally ill at the time of the crimes. The lawyers had hoped the U.S. Supreme Court would outlaw executions of the mentally ill as it has done with people con-
David Thomas
Jontez Garvis
Colendula Green. Garvis was arrested Friday, Thomas on Sunday, Green said, both See Jackson, Page A3.
BUNDLED UP
See Execution, Page A9.
No grandstanding, Waller tells attorneys in pardons fight By Emily Wagster Pettus The Associated Press JACKSON — Attorneys for a group of former inmates told the Mississippi Supreme Court today that former Gov. Haley Barbour’s pardons of them are valid. The Supreme Court was holding a lengthy hearing on whether the pardons were legal. In his final days in office, Barbour pardoned nearly 200 people, including four convicted murderers and a robber who worked as trusties at the Governor’s
WEATHER Tonight: partly cloudy, lows in the mid-30s Friday: showers, highs in the mid-50s Mississippi River: 36.6 feet Rose: 0.4 foot Flood stage: 43 feet
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Mansion. His actions outraged victims’ families. Attorney Thomas Fortner, who represents four of the former trusties, said past cases suggest that pardons are not reviewable by the courts. “If you have a valid pardon signed by the governor ... it is not open to judicial review,” Fortner told the court. Chief Justice Bill Waller Jr. opened the hearing, saying no decision would be announced today. He did not say when the court might
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rule. He also admonished the attorneys. “I don’t want any political soundbites. I don’t want any jury arguments. No grandstanding. No sniping. Everybody understand?” Waller said. Attorney General Jim Hood is challenging the pardons. The Democrat contends that if ads weren’t run in daily papers every day for 30 days, or weekly newspapers once a week for five weeks, the pardons aren’t valid under the state
constitution. Section 124 of the Mississippi Constitution says that in felony cases no pardon “shall be granted until the applicant therefor shall have published for thirty days, in some newspaper in the county where the crime was committed, and in the case there be no newspaper published in said county, then in an adjoining county ...” Fortner said the sole judge of whether the publication was proper is the governor. See Pardon, Page A10.
Brenden Neville•The Vicksburg Post
Jovanny Martinez holds his son, Jeremiah Martinez, 2, wrapped in a blanket to keep him warm during a family outing to Riverfront Park late Wednesday afternoon. The group arrived at the park in light clothing and had to bundle up when the temperature dropped over a short period of time. Temperatures will continue to drop tonight and Friday, the National Weather Service forecast, until they hit a low in the 20s Saturday night.
TODAY IN HISTORY 1861: Jefferson Davis is elected provisional president of the Confederate States of America at a congress held in Montgomery, Ala. 1870: The U.S. Weather Bureau is established. 1942: Daylight-saving “War Time” goes into effect in the United States, with clocks turned one hour forward. 1943: The World War II battle of Guadalca-
nal in the southwest Pacific ends with an Allied victory over Japanese forces. 1950: In a speech in Wheeling, W.Va., Sen. Joseph McCarthy, R-Wis., charges the State Department is riddled with Communists. 1964: The Beatles make their first live American television appearance on “The Ed Sullivan Show,” broadcast from New York on CBS.
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