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| Texas executes female murderer Suzanne Basso | |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| A woman convicted of murder in Texas has been put to death, only the 14th time a female has been executed in the US in nearly four decades. | A woman convicted of murder in Texas has been put to death, only the 14th time a female has been executed in the US in nearly four decades. |
| Suzanne Basso, 59, was pronounced dead from lethal injection at 18:26 local time Wednesday (00:26 GMT Thursday). | Suzanne Basso, 59, was pronounced dead from lethal injection at 18:26 local time Wednesday (00:26 GMT Thursday). |
| She was convicted of the 1998 torture and killing of a mentally impaired man she had promised to marry. | |
| Hours earlier, the Supreme Court rejected her lawyer's appeal that she was not mentally competent. | Hours earlier, the Supreme Court rejected her lawyer's appeal that she was not mentally competent. |
| Basso reportedly did not make a final statement, and smiled at two friends attending the execution. | Basso reportedly did not make a final statement, and smiled at two friends attending the execution. |
| She was sentenced to death for luring Louis Musso, 59, from New Jersey and killing him in an effort to collect his insurance and benefits. | She was sentenced to death for luring Louis Musso, 59, from New Jersey and killing him in an effort to collect his insurance and benefits. |
| His battered body, washed with bleach, was found in a ditch outside Houston. | His battered body, washed with bleach, was found in a ditch outside Houston. |
| Women make up about 2% of condemned US inmates, with only 60 out of 3,100 on death row. | Women make up about 2% of condemned US inmates, with only 60 out of 3,100 on death row. |
| Nearly 1,400 men have been put to death since the US Supreme Court re-instated the death penalty in 1976. | Nearly 1,400 men have been put to death since the US Supreme Court re-instated the death penalty in 1976. |