Reporter Five: It seemed to take long longer than Williams thought it would.
Reporter Six: All the prison staff attending to him were touching him the whole time. One guard touched his upper arm, as if to comfort him. He lifted his head a lot. It was at least 22 minutes from when he entered the room until he was dead. He talked a lot to the guards, and seemed exasperated it was taking so long.
Questions and answer segment (from the other reporters listening to the six): There were no last words spoken, he gave his last words to the warden who will release them. He kept his glasses on the whole time. His attorneys seemed frustrated it took so long.
Another six reporters are coming in now.
Reporter 9: There was a lot of trouble getting the needle in his left arm. He could see a lot of blood on a towlette that a guard was using. 12:18: They taped his arm cocoon style to the armrest. They used the entire roll of tape.
Reporter 11: (A radio reporter and former criminal defense lawyer)Williams was very active. It was very unpleasant. He felt himself getting physically ill. He was a very big guy. The nurse was sweating and asking for help. It took much, much longer than he thought it would. He doesn't think he'll ever agree to witness another execution.
Question and answer segment: He didn't show fear or remorse. Some thought there was an air of defiance. The process was so labored.
Third set of witnesses: Nothing new.
The warden is now here. He disputes one of the reporter's perceptions that Tookie was trying to intimidate any of the witnesses. Tookie declined a last meal and took milk and water. He refused the offer to have a spiritual advisor present. [Note: Jesse Jackson had been lobbying to be the spiritual witness.] He had no last words, but the warden believes he passed a statement earlier to one of his supporters to read after his death. Barbara Bechnel will take possession of his body.
My impressions of the reporters: A few seemed shell-shocked, a few seemed like they expected more, a few seemed biased in reporting their interpretations of Tookie's facial expressions, and a few were able to convey the relevant details with some feeling behind it.
1:40 am (PT), (2:40 a.m Denver time): I'm signing off. R.I.P., Stanley "Tookie" Williams.
*******
The death penalty system in this country is broken. It lacks basic safeguards to prevent arbitrary, erroneous and discriminatory application of the death penalty. Since 1973, 122 people in 25 states have been released from death row with evidence of their innocence. It's time for a moratorium.
Perhaps the bleakest fact of all is that the death penalty is imposed not only in a freakish and discriminatory manner, but also in some cases upon defendants who are actually innocent.” - Supreme Court Justice William J. Brennan Jr., 1994
12:01 am California time. There are 2,000 people gathered at San Quentin. The execution is going on as I write this. He is hooked up to a heart monitor, with two IV lines, in case one malfunctions.
Mike Farrell, President of Death Penalty Focus:
"The governor's 96-hour wait to give an answer was a cowardly act and was tortuous," said former "M A S H" star Mike Farrell, a death penalty opponent. "I would suggest that had he the courage of his convictions he could have gone over to San Quentin and met with Stanley Williams himself and made a determination rather than letting his staff legal adviser write this garbage."
More from Farrell:
"We will not allow cowardly politicians to drag us down their path ... we know it's a prostitute's path . . . all of us are disgusted by the decision of the governor. We will not allow them to drag us down to the gutter with them. We will stand as examples of what this country should be."
Best Headline, from Australia: Schwarzenegger Terminates Stanley Tookie Williams
Joan Baez sang "Swing Low, Sweet Chariot" outside the gates to the prison.
A contingent of 40 people who had walked the approximately 25 miles from San Francisco arrived earlier at the prison holding signs calling for an end to "state-sponsored murder."
Tookie spoke through Jesse Jackson:
"Those who care about my legacy and my view, avoid violence and live on and work together...I feel good. I have no fear. I've been here before."
Jesse Jackson:
Jackson, who compared Gov. Schwarzenegger to Pontius Pilate, spoke to a crowd of more than 1,000 at the east gate of San Quentin State Prison.
"Tonight, have mercy on us and the painful wickedness of our ways," said Jesse Jackson, speaking in front of a crowd estimated to exceed 1,000 at the east gate of San Quentin Prison. "How do you handle him being wrongfully convicted and murdered? Long live the legacy of Tookie as redeemer and healer."
And not about Tookie, but check out the "I Oppose the Death Penalty" Photo Project.
