Execution of man sentenced to death who gouged out his own eyes postponed

HOUSTON. Scheduled for next month, the execution of a Texas death row man whose lawyers say he had both of his eyes gouged out – in each separate incident – due to severe mental illness, was delayed by a judge on Tuesday.

André Thomas was due to be executed on 5 April, having been sentenced to death for the March 2004 murders of his ex-wife Laura Christine Boren, 20, their 4-year-old son Andre Lee and 13-month-old daughter Leiha Marie. Hughes cut out the hearts of two children.

He later told the police that God had ordered him to commit the murders and that he believed all three were demons. The murders of Boren and his children shocked Sherman, a city of about 45,000 people 65 miles (105 km) north of Dallas.

State District Judge Jim Fallon on Tuesday issued an order to set aside the execution date. Fallon’s decision came after Thomas’ attorneys requested more time to prepare for a court hearing to review his jurisdiction.

The Supreme Court banned the death penalty for the mentally retarded, but not for people with serious mental illness. However, it stipulated that the person must be capable of being executed.

“We are confident that when we present evidence of Mr. Thomas’s incompetence, the court will agree that his execution violates the Constitution,” Thomas’ attorney, Maury Levin, wrote in a statement. “To carry this blind psychotic on a stretcher for execution offends our sense of humanity and serves no legitimate purpose.”

His lawyers said that after he gouged out his other eye, he ate it so the government couldn’t hear his thoughts.

More than 100 religious leaders and others have previously called on Gov. Greg Abbott to stop the 39-year-old’s execution.

J. Carey Ashmore of the Grayson County District Attorney’s office, which filed the criminal case, said religious leaders and others seeking leniency with Thomas were not fully briefed on the case and have not read any reports or assessments of the case. his mental state.

“None of these people know anything about this case. They repeat what the defense told them,” Ashmore said.

Fallon’s order gives Thomas’ lawyers until July 5 to file a motion to review the prisoner’s jurisdiction before his execution can proceed. If Fallon decides that Thomas’ lawyers have provided enough evidence to move forward, experts will be appointed to look into his case and other evidence will be considered by the judge before he makes a decision.

“We are ready to do it. We are ready to let this process take place and let the judge decide. That’s all we want,” Ashmore said.

Levine called Thomas “one of the most mentally ill inmates in Texas history”, adding that he “cannot be executed for lack of a rational understanding of the motives behind his execution”.

Ashmore said he reviewed documents that appear to indicate that Thomas knew the date of his execution and that he knows he is in prison because he killed his ex-wife and children.

Juan A. Lozano, Associated Press

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