CNN
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Missouri executed Brian Dorsey after he was sentenced to death for killing his cousin and her husband, with the support of more than 70 correctional officers and other pro-life advocates.
Dorsey, 52, was executed Tuesday, and his time of death was recorded as 6:11 p.m., according to the Missouri Department of Corrections.
The U.S. Supreme Court on Tuesday refused to halt the execution.
The state's Republican governor this week denied clemency for a serious blow to Dorsey, who had petitioned to have his sentence commuted to life in prison, citing Dorsey's remorse, rehabilitation in prison and trial. The defense cited an “incident'' as the reason. Financial conflict of interest. ”
In his final written statement before his execution, Dorsey thanked his supporters for advocating on his behalf and apologized to the victims' loved ones, Sarah and Benjamin Bonney.
“I am truly, deeply, and overwhelmingly sorry to Sarah's entire family and loved ones, and to all of Ben's surviving family and loved ones,” according to a statement provided by his attorney to CNN. , Dorsey said, “Words cannot express the weight of my guilt and shame.'' “I still love you. I never wanted to hurt anyone. I'm sorry I hurt them and you.”
“To my family, friends and everyone who tried to stop this, I love you. I appreciate you,” he said. “Lord I have peace in my heart and I am grateful because of you. To everyone on all sides of this sentence, I bear no ill will or anger, just acceptance and understanding. is.”
Dorsey's petition also cited support from some of the victims' relatives, whom his attorney said were related to the victims, but other members of the victims' families also supported the execution. said in a statement to CNN that Dorsey committed the “ultimate betrayal” when he killed Sarah Bonney. Her cousin and her husband Benjamin left her then 4-year-old daughter Jade at her home, with her parents' bodies locked in her bedroom.
A statement from Sarah Bonney's family said: “Not only did Jade lose her parents, we lost a daughter and a son, a sister and brother, an aunt and uncle, and a great-aunt and great-uncle to so many others.” It is written in part.
“They were deeply loved by all who knew them,” it reads. “After all of the years of pain and suffering, we can finally see the light at the end of the tunnel. Brian will receive the justice that Sarah and Ben have received for so many years.”
Mr. Dorsey's argument for clemency was not persuasive to Gov. Mike Parson, who said in a statement Monday that it would carry out the inmate's death sentence in accordance with an order from the Missouri Supreme Court.
“Brian Dorsey punished his beloved family for helping him in his time of need,” Parson said. “His cousins invited him to their home, where they gave him a place to stay, surrounded by his family and friends. Dorsey retaliated against them with cruelty, inhumane violence, and murder.”
“While nothing can ever right the pain Mr. Dorsey caused others, justice will be served and closure will be achieved by carrying out Mr. Dorsey's sentence in accordance with Missouri law and court orders,” the governor said.
The petition argued that the inmate's remorse and defense at trial warranted mercy.
Dorsey's attorney said he deeply regrets the murder. His clemency petition claims the killings occurred while Dorsey was suffering from “drug-induced psychosis and alcohol-induced blackouts” after years of drug abuse to self-medicate chronic depression. did.
Mr. Dorsey and his lawyers pointed to his impeccable disciplinary record and work as a barber as evidence of his redemption. For 11 years, Dorsey has been cutting the hair of Potosi Correctional Center employees, including chaplains, wardens and correctional officers, some of whom wrote letters to the governor supporting his pursuit of clemency.
“In my opinion, if it weren't for the drugs, none of this would have happened,” wrote one person, whose name was redacted in the privacy petition along with others. “The Mr. Dorsey that I know must have been insane at the time these murders occurred.”
In addition, Mr. Dorsey's lawyers argue that his sentence was unfair because of the trial attorney's fee arrangements. Both were given a flat fee of $12,000, which equated to him only a few dollars an hour for the work required on a major case.
Mr. Dorsey's lawyers said this created a “financial conflict of interest” that would hamper his case efforts, and that his trial lawyers were reluctant to convict Mr. Dorsey without a guarantee of a life sentence or a thorough investigation. He claims he has admitted it. Had he chosen the latter, his current lawyers argue, Dorsey might have been found to lack the deliberative capacity needed for a first-degree murder charge.
Mr. Dorsey's trial lawyer previously testified that paying the flat fee did not affect the handling of the case. One declined to comment and the other did not respond when contacted by CNN last week.
The murder occurred on the night of Dec. 23, 2006, according to the case history contained in a Missouri Supreme Court decision last month. Hours earlier, Dorsey had called Sarah for help. Dorsey said he had two drug dealers in his apartment and needed money to pay them.
The couple went to Dorsey's apartment and the drug dealers left. They then took Dorsey back to her home, where she spent the night drinking and playing pool with her family and friends, her ruling said.
Later that night, Dorsey entered their room and shot them at close range with a shotgun, according to the verdict. Court records say Dorsey raped Sarah's body, but Dorsey's attorney argued that this remains a charge. He was never charged with or pleaded guilty to rape or sexual assault.
Dorsey was charged with two counts of first-degree murder and pleaded guilty in March 2008. He was sentenced to death for each murder, according to court records, and his conviction and death sentence had previously been upheld on appeal.
The killing was deeply traumatic for Sarah Bonney's family, the statement said, adding that her body was discovered by her parents. Over the next few years, the family did everything they could to keep Sarah and Ben's memory alive, taking her daughter to the cemetery and releasing balloons every year.
“We remember all the things she missed in life without her parents: the first day of school, the school party, the school dance, the first date, the sweet sixteen, the first boyfriend, and high school graduation. ceremony,” their statement reads. “All these were taken away from her by her family who declared that they loved her.”
However, Jenny Gerhauser, a cousin of the inmate and Sarah Bonney, said that while she had held out hope that Dorsey would survive, “the ultimate failure was to save her cousin Brian Dorsey's life.” I am devastated and disappointed,” he said in a statement. early Tuesday afternoon.
“Brian will be released tonight,” she said. “His punishment ends, and for all of us who have only committed the sin of loving him, our punishment begins.”
CNN's John Fritze contributed to this report.