By james art 
South Carolina inmate Richard Moore was executed by lethal injection Friday for the 1999 slaying of a convenience store clerk, despite widespread calls for clemency.
Moore was the second person executed in the state in a little more than a month after a 13-year hiatus caused by difficulty obtaining drugs for the lethal injection protocol. The 59-year-old was pronounced dead at 6:24 p.m. after Gov. Henry McMaster and the Supreme Court denied his request to stay the execution. Two years ago, in discussing Moore’s case, McMaster, a Republican, said he would not issue a reversal.
When the execution began, Moore was strapped to a gurney with a blanket covering most of his body. Witnesses said he stared at the ceiling with his eyes closed as the deadly drug entered his body before taking between four and six deep breaths. The state reported.
Witnesses included two family members of James Mahoney, Moore’s attorney, Lindsey Vann, his spiritual advisor, three journalists, a South Carolina Department of Corrections officer, a South Carolina Department of Law Enforcement agent and Spartanburg attorney Barry Barnett, who played a role in pursuing Moore in 2001, Barnett and members of the Mahoney family looked stoically ahead as Moore took his last breath, according to The state. Outside, about 40 people, including a lawyer who represented Moore, opponents of the death penalty and members of the clergy held a prayer vigil.
Matt Kelly/AP
In a final statement, which was read at a press conference, Moore said: “To the family of Mr. James Mahoney, I am deeply sorry for the pain and sorrow I have caused you all. To my children and grandchildren, I love you and I am so proud of you. Thank you for the joy you brought into my life.
“To all my family and friends – new and old – thank you for your love and support.”
His last meal was steak medium, fried catfish and shrimp, sliced potatoes, green peas, broccoli with cheese, sweet potato pie, German chocolate cake, and grape juice.
Moore was the last person on South Carolina’s death row to be convicted by an all-black jury, his defense attorneys said. He is also believed to be the only person in the history of South Carolina’s death penalty executed for armed robbery who did not bring the fatal weapon to the scene.
Moore was convicted of killing a Mahoney convenience store clerk during a 1999 robbery in Spartanburg County. According to prosecutors, Moore entered the store without a weapon and was able to wrestle Mahoney’s gun, which he pulled out after arguing with Moore because he was missing 12 cents. Mahoney then reached for a second firearm, shooting Moore in the arm, but Moore responded by fatally shooting Mahoney in the head. Prosecutors said Moore then fled the scene with a bag containing more than $1,400 in cash.
Prosecutors accused Moore of robbing the store to fund his crack addiction. Over the years, however, Moore claimed he was there to buy beer and cigarettes. In 2001 he was sentenced to death.
Unsuccessful appeals
Moore has appealed his conviction several times, most recently on the grounds that prosecutors impermissibly struck two black jurors because of their race in his 2001 murder trial, which the state denied. In 1986, the Supreme Court ruled that prosecutors could not strike a potential juror based solely on race. If challenged, the state must provide a “race-neutral” reason for excluding the applicant.
Trey Gowdy — a prosecutor in Moore’s case who later served four terms as a Republican congressman — told the judge that one black juror candidate was struck mainly for hiding his criminal record during questioning. while another was excluded because their son was convicted of murder. Gowdy noted that a white juror with a similar marital status was also removed. He also pointed out that the final jury included a Spaniard.
But in a brief filed Tuesday with the Supreme Court, South Carolina’s attorney general argued it was too late for Moore to raise the issue of race to the jury because it had not been mentioned in previous appeals. They claim Moore killed Mahoney in self-defense.
His pleas drew national attention, with more than 20 people — including two jurors, the judge from Moore’s original trial and a former director of the state prison system — asking McMaster to spare Moore’s life by pardoning him, the Associated Press reported.
Moore’s son, Lindell, who was four years old when his father was charged, also argued that his father deserved mercy.
“He’s not some monster,” Lindell said The state. “He’s just a guy who was struggling, but always a good-hearted guy, you know, a normal guy trying to be a good father.”
While in prison, Moore is said to have become a devout Christian, devoted himself to mentoring other inmates, and begun to paint. He also encourages his children to avoid their own missteps.
Former Department of Corrections Director John Ozmint described Moore as “a reliable, consistent force for good on death row,” according to The stateand argued that commuting Moore’s sentence could serve as a powerful example of redemption. Ozmint added: “Perhaps the most compelling reason to commute Richard’s sentence is precisely because he is at peace with whatever decision you make.”