Unless the U.S. Supreme Court steps in to stop it, Virginia will execute its first woman in nearly a century on Thursday. Teresa Lewis, 41, is on death row for arranging the murders of her husband and stepson.
Opponents of the death penalty urged Virginia Gov. Robert McDonnell to grant clemency, saying Lewis is "borderline mentally retarded" and was manipulated by a smarter conspirator to commit the murder in order to get an insurance payout. But McDonnell said he would not spare her life.
The Washington Post writes:
McDonnell, a death penalty supporter, said in an interview at the state Capitol late Friday that clemency petitions present some of "the toughest decisions" a governor faces. Over the past few weeks, he said, he has read court transcripts and documents submitted by Lewis's attorneys, although he has not talked directly with the families involved. He said Lewis's gender did not enter into his decision.
In a statement announcing the decision, McDonnell said Lewis had admitted the "heinous crimes" and noted that no medical professional has concluded that she is mentally retarded under Virginia law. "I find no compelling reason to set aside the sentence that was imposed by the Circuit Court," McDonnell said.
The two men who actually committed the murders, one of whom was Lewis' lover, were sentenced to life in prison. One of them made a deal to avoid the death penalty by pleading guilty and accepting a life sentence, The judge said it would be unfair to sentence the second man to a harsher penalty for the same crime.
But in sentencing Lewis to death, the judge said she was the "head of this serpent."
Lewis' supporters say tests show she has an IQ of 72. The threshold for mental retardation as defined by the courts is less than 70. The Supreme Court has ruled executing the mentally impaired is unconstitutional.
Eleven woman have been executed since the death penalty was restored in the U.S. in 1976. The last one was in Texas in 2005.
The last time Virginia executed a woman was in 1917, when a 17-year-old girl was put to death for murdering* her boss after being accused of stealing a gold locket.
(*Editor's Note: In our first edition of the story, we said the girl received the death penalty due to theft. Our readers let us know the sentence seemed just a tiny bit harsh. Sure enough, there was a murder charge also included.)
You have read one.
The other side of the story includes the details of the crime and tests Mr. Berman's suggestion that this woman was somehow mentally incapable of masterminding this murder scheme.
"Lewis began an affair with Shallenberger, and authorities say the 2 planned to kill her husband to collect the insurance money."
"They later decided to kill both Julian and Charles, who was coming home on leave, records show. At one point, authorities say Lewis brought along her 16-year-old daughter to have sex with the then 19-year-old Fuller in a parking lot. The daughter had never met Fuller before."
"Using sex and promises of money, Lewis, then 33, plotted with her then 22-year-old lover, Matthew Shallenberger, and his friend Rodney Fuller, to murder her husband, Julian Lewis, 51, and stepson, C.J. Lewis, 25, a soldier visiting the Lewises' mobile home on Oct. 30, 2002."
"Lewis was to be the beneficiary of her stepson's $250,000 life insurance policy if both he and her husband died."
"On the night before Halloween in 2002, Lewis packed her husband's lunch for the next day and included a note, "I miss you when you're gone." She highlighted it with a smiley-face drawing."
"She then prayed with her husband and they went to bed. Later that night, she got up, unlocked the back door, putting their pit bull out of the way in another bedroom."
"When the two arrived armed with shotguns paid for by Lewis, she left the bed she shared with her husband and waited in the kitchen during the shooting."
"Shallenberger and Fuller came in and shot both men several times. As her husband lay bleeding, Lewis went through his pants and wallet and gave the men the $300 inside."
"After waiting about 45 minutes, Lewis called authorities to report 2 intruders had killed her husband and stepson."
"Lewis, Shallenberger and Fuller each pled guilty. The triggermen were sentenced to life (Shallenberger committed suicide in prison). But Lewis, held by the judge to be the mastermind of the scheme, was sentenced to death."
Sounds like she masterminded it to me. Of course, I agree with Mr. Berman that she was no evil genius.
The plural of 'anecdote' is not 'data'.
It is not my "suggestion" that she is mentally incapable -- I am just reporting what other people are saying about her. I am making no judgments either way on this story.
Since I have no edit button (nor do I want one!) readers can replace:
"The other side of the story includes the details of the crime and tests Mr. Berman's suggestion that this woman was somehow mentally incapable of masterminding this murder scheme."
With:
"The other side of the story includes the details of the crime and tests the suggestion that this woman was somehow mentally incapable of masterminding this murder scheme."
I apologize for roping you into this by claiming that it was your opinion.
The plural of 'anecdote' is not 'data'.
Thanks!
"The last time Virginia executed a woman was in 1917, when a 17-year-old girl was put to death for stealing a gold locket."
What?
This source provides a slightly different account:
http://deathpenaltynews.blogspot.com /
After being accused of stealing a gold locket, the 17 year old murdered her employer. Not quite the same thing. It took me all of three minutes to check a claim that most folks would find hard to believe on its face.
that's like saying a man who shot someone while drunk was arrested for drinking.
My original source material did not include the murder of the boss part of the story. Seems like an important fact to leave out! But I made the changes. Thanks for pointing it out.
Yep, it's funny how those "little" things can change the perspective quite a bit. I've noticed it tends to be a common failing on death penalty "sources". Something else I've noticed about some of those "sources" is they rake in big bucks in donations in the course of painting a picture quite different from what a jury saw. A quick search for more objective references usually turns up enough of those missing details that's it's hard not to say the punishment fits the crime .
I can only recall one case where my impression is an innocent person was likely put to death. If you have time for a long read, it's one of the best pieces of investigative journalism I've ever seen:
http://www.newyorker.com/reporting/2009/09/07/090907fa_fact_grann