Napoleon Beazley (August 5, 1976 – May 28, 2002) was an American convicted murderer executed by

lethal injection Lethal injection is the practice of injecting one or more drugs into a person (typically a barbiturate, paralytic, and potassium) for the express purpose of causing death. The main application for this procedure is capital punishment, but t ...

by the State of Texas for the murder of 63-year-old businessman John Luttig in 1994. Beazley, who was then 17, shot Luttig in the head twice in his garage on April 19, 1994, to steal his

Mercedes-Benz Mercedes-Benz (), commonly referred to simply as Mercedes and occasionally as Benz, is a German automotive brand that was founded in 1926. Mercedes-Benz AG (a subsidiary of the Mercedes-Benz Group, established in 2019) is based in Stuttgart, ...

. Beazley also shot at Luttig's wife, but missed. She survived the assault by playing dead. Beazley carried out the crime with two accomplices, Cedrick and Donald Coleman, who later testified against him. Both were sentenced to 40 years in prison. John Luttig was the father of

United States federal judge In the United States, a federal judge is a judge who serves on a court established under Article Three of the U.S. Constitution. Often called "Article III judges", federal judges include the chief justice and associate justices of the U.S. S ...

J. Michael Luttig. During Beazley's appeals to the U.S. Supreme Court, three of the nine justices recused themselves because of their personal ties to Judge Luttig, leaving six justices to review the case. Justice Antonin Scalia recused himself because Luttig had clerked for him, while Justices David Souter and Clarence Thomas recused themselves because Luttig had been involved in their confirmations to the Supreme Court. On June 3, 1997, Beazley filed an application for writ of ''

habeas corpus ''Habeas corpus'' (; from Medieval Latin, ) is a legal procedure invoking the jurisdiction of a court to review the unlawful detention or imprisonment of an individual, and request the individual's custodian (usually a prison official) to ...

'' with the Texas state trial court. On September 5, 1997, the trial court held an evidentiary hearing. On October 31, 1997, the trial court entered findings of fact and conclusions of law denying ''habeas corpus'' relief. On January 21, 1998, the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals accepted the trial court's findings; they turned down relief. On October 1, 1998, Beazley filed a petition for ''habeas corpus'' in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Texas, which eventually denied relief. On September 30, 1999, the Supreme Court denied further relief. On October 26, 1999, the district court turned down reconsideration. On December 28, 1999, the U.S. District Court allowed Beazley to make an appeal. On June 1, 2000, Beazley filed his brief on appeal with the

United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit The United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit (in case citations, 5th Cir.) is one of the 13 United States courts of appeals. It has appellate jurisdiction over the U.S. district courts in the following federal judicial districts: ...

. On February 9, 2001, the Fifth Circuit issued a published opinion denying ''habeas corpus'' relief. On March 15, 2001, the Fifth Circuit turned down Beazley's petition for rehearing. On March 30, 2001, Beazley's execution was set for August 15, 2001 by the District Court of Smith County, Texas. On June 13, 2001, Beazley petitioned for certiorari review from the denial of federal ''habeas corpus'' relief. On June 28, 2001, Beazley applied for a stay of execution from the Supreme Court. On August 13, 2001, the Supreme Court voted 3–3 on Beazley's request for a stay of execution. The tie vote resulted in the Fifth Circuit's decision standing, effectively rejecting Beazley's request for a stay. On August 15, 2001, the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals granted a stay of execution on the day of Beazley's scheduled execution. On October 1, 2001, the Supreme Court turned down ''

certiorari In law, ''certiorari'' is a court process to seek judicial review of a decision of a lower court or government agency. ''Certiorari'' comes from the name of a prerogative writ in England, issued by a superior court to direct that the recor ...

'' review. On April 17, 2002, the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals vacated the stay of execution. On April 26, 2002, Beazley's execution was set for May 28, 2002, by the District Court of Smith County, Texas. On May 7, 2002, Beazley filed a petition for clemency with the Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles. On May 13, 2002, Beazley filed a supplemental petition for clemency. On May 17, 2002, Beazley along with three others filed suit in the U.S. District Court pleading inadequate representation. That same day, U.S. District Judge Hayden Head declined to hear the lawsuit. A notice of appeal was filed. On May 21, 2002, the Fifth Circuit issued an opinion affirming the lower court's judgment, turning down injunctive relief. On May 22, 2002, Beazley petitioned for ''certiorari'' review to the Supreme Court. On May 28, 2002, the Supreme Court voted unanimously 6–0 to reject Beazley's request for a writ of ''habeas corpus''. He was executed by lethal injection that evening. His last words were: Beazley's execution sparked a fierce debate between opponents and supporters of the death penalty, particularly with respect to juvenile offenders. Some organizations, such as

Amnesty International Amnesty International (also referred to as Amnesty or AI) is an international non-governmental organization focused on human rights, with its headquarters in the United Kingdom. The organization says that it has more than ten million members a ...

, argued in favor of clemency due to his age (at the time of the offense Beazley was 3½ months from his 18th birthday) and their opposition to the death penalty in general. Beazley was one of the last juvenile offenders to be executed in the United States. In 2005, the Supreme Court (in '' Roper v. Simmons'') banned the practice of executing offenders who were under the age of 18 when they committed their crimes..

References

External links

Video interviews and their transcripts from the Texas After Violence Project
''Two separate interviews with Napoleon Beazley's father, Ireland, and his brother, Jamaal''. Retrieved 2010-11-11.
Interview with Jamaal Beazley, Brother of Napoleon Beazley
''Human Rights Documentation Initiative and Texas After Violence Project''. Retrieved 2010-11-11.
Interview with Ireland Beazley, Father of Napoleon Beazley
''Human Rights Documentation Initiative and Texas After Violence Project''. Retrieved 2010-11-11. * ( JPG). '' Texas Department of Criminal Justice''. Retrieved 2007-11-11. * {{DEFAULTSORT:Beazley, Napoleon 1976 births 2002 deaths 1994 murders in the United States Executed people from Texas American people executed for murder 21st-century executions by Texas People executed by Texas by lethal injection Place of birth missing People convicted of murder by Texas Executed African-American people Juvenile offenders executed by the United States 21st-century executions of American people People from Grapeland, Texas

See also

References

External links