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| Oklahoma, Texas Execute Inmates |
| By Associated Press |
| Published: 07/25/2003 |
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A convicted hit man was executed Thursday for fatally shooting a 14-month-old Houston boy in his crib more than two decades ago as part of a murder-for-hire scheme that also left the child's parents dead. Allen Wayne Janecka, 53, also was accused of strangling the toddler's grandmother four years earlier. Both schemes were orchestrated by the woman's son, Markham Duff-Smith, who was trying to eliminate relatives so he could collect inheritance money. Duff-Smith was executed more than 10 years ago. In a brief statement before he was put to death by injection, Janecka expressed love to his family and thanked prison chaplains 'who have brought me a long way.' Earlier Thursday, the Supreme Court rejected Janecka's challenge of ballistics evidence. He contended the Houston police crime lab - now subject of investigations for its testing of DNA evidence - also could have botched his evidence. No DNA evidence was involved in Janecka's case. Janecka was the 20th Texas inmate executed this year and the second in as many days. At least six other convicted killers are on the state's execution schedule, including three next month. Meanwhile, an Oklahoma inmate who fatally beat a woman he said was rude to him when he tried to sell her perfume was also executed by injection Thursday at the state penitentiary. Jackie Lee Willingham, 33, was convicted for beating 62-year-old Jayne Van Wey to death in her office bathroom in 1994 after she refused to buy anything from him. 'I want to apologize to the Van Wey family. I'm so sorry for the pain I've caused you,' Willingham said. |
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