By Associated Press
Montgomery, AL – Governor Bob Riley says he will not stop the lethal injection execution of Luther Jerome Williams, set for 6 p.m. Thursday at Holman prison.
In a statement, Riley says Williams committed a ''random, cold-blooded crime that took the life of an innocent man almost 20 years ago.'' Riley says he ''will not intervene in this scheduled execution because there is no justifiable reason to delay it.''
Williams' attorneys have asked the U. S. Supreme Court for a stay of execution. They are awaiting that ruling this afternoon.
The 47-year-old Williams of Birmingham was convicted in 1989 of shooting 63-year-old John Robert Kirk of Gordo. Kirk was assaulted when he stopped his pickup truck alongside Interstate 20/59 to check the engine. He was led into the woods and shot in the head during a robbery.
A Tuscaloosa County jury recommended that he be sentenced to death. The trial judge concurred and imposed the death penalty.
(Copyright 2007 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)