Convicted killer William L. Wright III of Altoona wants to die.
His attorneys want him to live.
Just two days after Gov. Ed Rendell signed a warrant for Wright to be executed Sept. 3, the Office of the Federal Public Defender in Pittsburgh stepped in. In a motion for a stay of execution filed in U.S. District Court in Johnstown on Wednesday, his attorneys say they want more time to “adequately investigate and prepare a petition on behalf of Mr. Wright.”
Yet in April, Wright – an inmate at SCI-Greene – wrote to Rendell, “I specifically request that you sign my death warrant as soon as humanly possible. I sincerely regret that the responsibility now falls on you to execute an innocent man.”
Wright, 46, was convicted in 2000 by a Lebanon County jury of murdering the husband of a woman with whom he was having an affair.
Authorities said he killed James Mowery, 38, of Altoona because Tammy Mowery reconciled with her husband and ended their affair.
Tammy Mowery was seven months pregnant with Wright’s child when the Thanksgiving 1998 shooting took place.
The shooting occurred in front of Mowery’s wife and their child.
Officers quickly caught Wright, who reportedly said, “I just toasted a guy.”
The motion for a stay said that, “The commonwealth may not execute an individual while counsel is reviewing the case and preparing to file a petition raising federal constitutional claims.”
The federal public defender’s office Thursday said it would not comment on the case.
Blair County District Attorney Richard Consiglio said Thursday he was sure Mowery’s family would want the lethal injection to go forward.
“I’m trying to figure out what our options are,” he said. ”I’m looking to see if there’s any response we can make to prevent the stay.
“Of course, if he (Wright) puts up a squawk, there’s a possibility he could be executed.”
Pennsylvania last executed a prisoner in 1999 under then-Gov. Tom Ridge.
Wright’s situation calls to mind the 1970s case of Utah murderer Gary Gilmore. Gilmore pleaded for months to be executed while his attorneys – including representatives of the American Civil Liberties Union – filed petitions to prevent the firing squad. The final appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court was denied on Jan. 17, 1977, and Gilmore was shot to death.
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Inmate: I want to die
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