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| Government Executes Second Federal Death Row Prisoner in a Week | Government Executes Second Federal Death Row Prisoner in a Week |
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| WASHINGTON — The Justice Department executed a 68-year-old man on Thursday for the gruesome murder in 1998 of a teenage girl, the second time this week the federal government has carried out capital punishment after a 17-year hiatus. | WASHINGTON — The Justice Department executed a 68-year-old man on Thursday for the gruesome murder in 1998 of a teenage girl, the second time this week the federal government has carried out capital punishment after a 17-year hiatus. |
| Wesley Ira Purkey was put to death at the federal penitentiary in Terre Haute, Ind., by lethal injection after the Supreme Court rejected the last of a number of legal challenges including assertions that he was not mentally competent. | Wesley Ira Purkey was put to death at the federal penitentiary in Terre Haute, Ind., by lethal injection after the Supreme Court rejected the last of a number of legal challenges including assertions that he was not mentally competent. |
| He was pronounced dead at 8:19 a.m. | He was pronounced dead at 8:19 a.m. |
| In the moments before his death, Mr. Purkey’s arms were strapped to a gurney, and a light blue blanket covered his body, according to a journalist who witnessed the execution. His spiritual adviser was nearby in a face mask and surgical mask, praying with gloved palms pressed together. | In the moments before his death, Mr. Purkey’s arms were strapped to a gurney, and a light blue blanket covered his body, according to a journalist who witnessed the execution. His spiritual adviser was nearby in a face mask and surgical mask, praying with gloved palms pressed together. |
| “I deeply regret the pain and suffering I caused to Jennifer’s family,” Mr. Purkey said before the execution, referring to his victim, Jennifer Long, 16, whom he raped, murdered and dismembered in Kansas City, Mo. | “I deeply regret the pain and suffering I caused to Jennifer’s family,” Mr. Purkey said before the execution, referring to his victim, Jennifer Long, 16, whom he raped, murdered and dismembered in Kansas City, Mo. |
| “I am deeply sorry,” Mr. Purkey said after a Bureau of Prisons official removed a mask from his face so he could speak. “I deeply regret the pain I caused to my daughter, who I love so very much. This sanitized murder really does not serve no purpose whatsoever. Thank you.” | “I am deeply sorry,” Mr. Purkey said after a Bureau of Prisons official removed a mask from his face so he could speak. “I deeply regret the pain I caused to my daughter, who I love so very much. This sanitized murder really does not serve no purpose whatsoever. Thank you.” |
| He took several deep breaths and blinked repeatedly before he lay his head back down on the gurney. With his mouth ajar and eyes closed, Mr. Purkey lay motionless for several minutes before prison officials reported a time of death. | He took several deep breaths and blinked repeatedly before he lay his head back down on the gurney. With his mouth ajar and eyes closed, Mr. Purkey lay motionless for several minutes before prison officials reported a time of death. |
| The Justice Department announced its intention to bring back federal capital punishment last summer. After a series of court fights over its plan to use a single drug for lethal injection, Attorney General William P. Barr scheduled four executions for this summer, the first by the federal government since 2003. | The Justice Department announced its intention to bring back federal capital punishment last summer. After a series of court fights over its plan to use a single drug for lethal injection, Attorney General William P. Barr scheduled four executions for this summer, the first by the federal government since 2003. |
| Mr. Purkey was the second on the list. | Mr. Purkey was the second on the list. |
| Jennifer’s father and stepmother told reporters that Mr. Purkey’s execution was long overdue. | Jennifer’s father and stepmother told reporters that Mr. Purkey’s execution was long overdue. |
| “He needed to take his last breath, he took my daughter’s last breath,” William Long, Jennifer’s father, said. | “He needed to take his last breath, he took my daughter’s last breath,” William Long, Jennifer’s father, said. |
| The Bureau of Prisons put to death Daniel Lewis Lee, 47, on Tuesday morning for his part in the murder of a family of three. Just hours before, the Supreme Court issued the final go-ahead, ruling in a split 5-4 decision in the dead of night that the federal government’s single-drug execution protocol was constitutional. The verdict cleared the way for Mr. Lee, Mr. Purkey, and Dustin Lee Honken, scheduled to die on Friday, to be executed this week. | The Bureau of Prisons put to death Daniel Lewis Lee, 47, on Tuesday morning for his part in the murder of a family of three. Just hours before, the Supreme Court issued the final go-ahead, ruling in a split 5-4 decision in the dead of night that the federal government’s single-drug execution protocol was constitutional. The verdict cleared the way for Mr. Lee, Mr. Purkey, and Dustin Lee Honken, scheduled to die on Friday, to be executed this week. |
| Mr. Purkey’s lawyers had argued that he was incompetent to be executed. They said he suffered from schizophrenia, Alzheimer’s disease and brain damage, which left him unable to comprehend why he was sentenced to death. He believed that his execution was intended as retaliation by the federal government for his frequent complaints about prison conditions, they said. | Mr. Purkey’s lawyers had argued that he was incompetent to be executed. They said he suffered from schizophrenia, Alzheimer’s disease and brain damage, which left him unable to comprehend why he was sentenced to death. He believed that his execution was intended as retaliation by the federal government for his frequent complaints about prison conditions, they said. |
| Judge Tanya Chutkan of the Federal District Court in Washington, D.C., ruled on Wednesday that Mr. Purkey’s execution should be delayed until the court could determine whether he was fit to be executed. | Judge Tanya Chutkan of the Federal District Court in Washington, D.C., ruled on Wednesday that Mr. Purkey’s execution should be delayed until the court could determine whether he was fit to be executed. |
| In a separate decision, Judge Chutkan also ruled on Wednesday that the lethal injection protocol required additional litigation to determine whether it violated several federal statutes and the inmates’ constitutional rights. She cited the potential for “irreparable harm” if the inmates were put to death before their claims could be resolved by the court. | In a separate decision, Judge Chutkan also ruled on Wednesday that the lethal injection protocol required additional litigation to determine whether it violated several federal statutes and the inmates’ constitutional rights. She cited the potential for “irreparable harm” if the inmates were put to death before their claims could be resolved by the court. |
| The government filed an immediate appeal in both cases. Judge Chutkan’s delays forced the Bureau to briefly postpone Mr. Purkey’s death, scheduled for Wednesday evening. The Supreme Court, which overturned a similar ruling from Judge Chutkan about the single-drug protocol in Mr. Lee’s case earlier this week, vacated both preliminary injunctions early Thursday. | The government filed an immediate appeal in both cases. Judge Chutkan’s delays forced the Bureau to briefly postpone Mr. Purkey’s death, scheduled for Wednesday evening. The Supreme Court, which overturned a similar ruling from Judge Chutkan about the single-drug protocol in Mr. Lee’s case earlier this week, vacated both preliminary injunctions early Thursday. |
| In the case concerning Mr. Purkey’s mental fitness, the court split 5-4 with the liberal justices dissenting, as they did earlier this week in Mr. Lee’s case. Justice Sonia Sotomayor, joined by Justices Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Stephen Breyer, and Elena Kagan, wrote that continuing with Mr. Purkey’s execution “despite the grave questions and factual findings regarding his mental competency, casts a shroud of constitutional doubt over the most irrevocable of injuries.” | In the case concerning Mr. Purkey’s mental fitness, the court split 5-4 with the liberal justices dissenting, as they did earlier this week in Mr. Lee’s case. Justice Sonia Sotomayor, joined by Justices Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Stephen Breyer, and Elena Kagan, wrote that continuing with Mr. Purkey’s execution “despite the grave questions and factual findings regarding his mental competency, casts a shroud of constitutional doubt over the most irrevocable of injuries.” |
| In a separate dissent, Justice Stephen Breyer, joined by Justice Ginsburg, reiterated questions about the effectiveness of the death penalty as a form of deterrence and retribution. | In a separate dissent, Justice Stephen Breyer, joined by Justice Ginsburg, reiterated questions about the effectiveness of the death penalty as a form of deterrence and retribution. |
| “A modern system of criminal justice must be reasonably accurate, fair, humane, and timely. Our recent experience with the federal government’s resumption of executions adds to the mounting body of evidence that the death penalty cannot be reconciled with those values,” he wrote. “I remain convinced of the importance of reconsidering the constitutionality of the death penalty itself.” | “A modern system of criminal justice must be reasonably accurate, fair, humane, and timely. Our recent experience with the federal government’s resumption of executions adds to the mounting body of evidence that the death penalty cannot be reconciled with those values,” he wrote. “I remain convinced of the importance of reconsidering the constitutionality of the death penalty itself.” |
| Updated August 24, 2020 | |
| A federal appeals court panel had issued a stay in Mr. Purkey’s case that remained in effect until the day before his death. In that proceeding, Mr. Purkey claimed that his legal counsel failed to adequately defend him at trial and during his habeas proceedings, but the government argued that federal law barred him from raising the issue so late in his case. | A federal appeals court panel had issued a stay in Mr. Purkey’s case that remained in effect until the day before his death. In that proceeding, Mr. Purkey claimed that his legal counsel failed to adequately defend him at trial and during his habeas proceedings, but the government argued that federal law barred him from raising the issue so late in his case. |
| The Seventh Circuit ruled that his claims deserved another look by the court before he was executed. The Supreme Court rejected that argument. | The Seventh Circuit ruled that his claims deserved another look by the court before he was executed. The Supreme Court rejected that argument. |
| The coronavirus pandemic also complicated Mr. Purkey’s case. The Rev. Dale Hartkemeyer, a Buddhist priest and his spiritual adviser, said he could not attend Mr. Purkey’s execution without exposing himself to the virus. The priest, who goes by the name of Seigen, had developed a relationship with Mr. Purkey over more than a decade. But he said his history of bronchitis and pleurisy, lung-related illnesses, left him at greater risk from the coronavirus. | The coronavirus pandemic also complicated Mr. Purkey’s case. The Rev. Dale Hartkemeyer, a Buddhist priest and his spiritual adviser, said he could not attend Mr. Purkey’s execution without exposing himself to the virus. The priest, who goes by the name of Seigen, had developed a relationship with Mr. Purkey over more than a decade. But he said his history of bronchitis and pleurisy, lung-related illnesses, left him at greater risk from the coronavirus. |
| Mr. Hartkemeyer sued the Justice Department, joined by a spiritual adviser for Mr. Honken. They argued that by forcing them to choose between their religious duties and health, the government violated the Religious Freedom Restoration Act. The law prohibits the government from burdening an individual’s exercise of religion. | Mr. Hartkemeyer sued the Justice Department, joined by a spiritual adviser for Mr. Honken. They argued that by forcing them to choose between their religious duties and health, the government violated the Religious Freedom Restoration Act. The law prohibits the government from burdening an individual’s exercise of religion. |
| A federal judge in Indiana rejected the lawsuit Tuesday, and the Supreme Court dismissed Mr. Hartkemeyer’s case Thursday morning. | A federal judge in Indiana rejected the lawsuit Tuesday, and the Supreme Court dismissed Mr. Hartkemeyer’s case Thursday morning. |
| Robert Dunham, executive director of the Death Penalty Information Center, said the court failed to give Mr. Purkey the opportunity to adequately defend his claims before his death. If the justices had followed the rules of judicial decision-making, Mr. Purkey would not have been executed, Mr. Dunham said. | Robert Dunham, executive director of the Death Penalty Information Center, said the court failed to give Mr. Purkey the opportunity to adequately defend his claims before his death. If the justices had followed the rules of judicial decision-making, Mr. Purkey would not have been executed, Mr. Dunham said. |
| “They did it again,” he said. “Five members of the court knew what outcome they wanted before they decided, and the merits didn’t matter.” | “They did it again,” he said. “Five members of the court knew what outcome they wanted before they decided, and the merits didn’t matter.” |