Ga. Executes Prisoner After Appeal Denied

It's the nation's first since Supreme Court ruled on the issue
By Sam Gale Rosen,  Newser Staff
Posted May 6, 2008 7:29 PM CDT
Ga. Executes Prisoner After Appeal Denied
People line up outside the Supreme Court in Washington, Monday, Jan. 7, 2008, to hear arguments about the lethal injection death penalty.    (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)

Georgia executed William Earl Lynd by lethal injection tonight, the first such execution in the nation since the Supreme Court cleared the way for them to resume, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports. Lynd kidnapped and murdered his girlfriend in 1988. The death penalty had been on hold across the US for eight months before the Supreme Court ruled that lethal injection did not amount to cruel and unusual punishment.

Lynd was declared dead at 7:51pm ET, about 20 minutes after receiving the lethal injection. The state's highest court rejected his final appeal this afternoon. Prison officials said Lynd did not make a final statement and had been "somber" throughout the day. About a dozen protesters stood vigil outside the prison near Jackson. (More William Earl Lynd stories.)

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