Hammer murderer is latest to die naturally on death row.
Robber-murderer Richard Ray Parson on Monday became the latest example illustrating that natural causes, not execution, are the leading cause of death on [California's] death row.
Since the death penalty was reinstated in 1978, California has executed 13 prisoners, while 53 have died of disease, old age or other natural reasons. Another 18 have committed suicide.
Executions have been on hiatus in the state since 2006 while a federal judge assesses whether the lethal injection method is humane. The last person to die on the injection gurney was Clarence Ray Allen, 76, in January 2006.
Parson, 67, was sent to death row from Sacramento County in 1996 for robbing and killing Theresa Schmiedt 2 years earlier. Schmiedt, a 59-year-old nurse, was beaten to death with a hammer in her Sacramento apartment. Parson stole her purse, prosecutors said.
Parson died Monday morning at a hospital, said the state Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation. It gave no further information.
Source: San Francisco Chronicle, March 1, 2011
_________________________
Use the tags below or the search engine at the top of this page to find updates, older or related articles on this Website.
No comments:
Post a Comment