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| -Lurid Crime Tales- |
| Virginia Inmate Forcibly Carried to Death Chamber |
| 2009-02-21 |
| An inmate declared his innocence Thursday after he was forcibly carried into Virginia's death chamber, where he was executed for gunning down a police officer. Edward Nathaniel Bell, who was convicted of killing the officer during a foot chase a decade ago, was pronounced dead at 9:11 p.m. Thursday at the Greensville Correctional Center. When the door between Bell's cell and the death chamber opened, the inmate thrust his hips backward and wouldn't step toward to the gurney where the lethal injection was administered. Six stocky corrections officers pulled him through the doorway and lifted him onto the gurney. "To the Timbrook family, you definitely have the wrong person," Bell said in the death chamber, addressing the victim's family. "The truth will come out one day. This here, killing me, there's no justice about it." Bell's lawyer, who also witnessed the execution, said a sedative the inmate was given made it difficult for him to walk. "Eddie's case is an example of how the system does not catch and correct errors," said attorney James G. Connell III. Bell, 43, was condemned for shooting Winchester police Sgt. Ricky Timbrook as the officer chased him down a dark alley on Oct. 29, 1999. Gov. Timothy M. Kaine denied Bell's request for clemency earlier Thursday. At least 10 current and former Winchester police officers witnessed the execution, including Winchester Sheriff Lenny Millholland. "I can't say it's closure but it's another chapter in the life of Ricky Timbrook and it ends the chapter that included Eddy Bell," said the sheriff, who was on the police force in 1999 and investigated Timbrook's death. Bell maintained that he did not shoot Timbrook, a 32-year-old popular police officer, SWAT Team Member and DARE instructor. Prosecutors, however, say Bell was a flashy drug dealer who held a grudge against Timbrook for arresting him two years earlier for possessing a concealed weapon. |
| Posted by:Fred |
| #7 It would surprise me, Glenmore - if ultra-liberal anti-death-penalty Governor Kaine (who never met a death row inmate he didn't "feel" for) wouldn't stay the execution, I'm betting he's extremely guilty, and the Commonwealth had the proof of it. |
| Posted by: Barbara Skolaut 2009-02-21 22:15 |
| #6 The legal system is not interested in justice, but in winning legal contests. The attitude is 'if he's not guilty of THIS, he's guilty of something else, so execute him anyway.' It's probably largely true, but still not justice. And it would not surprise me if Eddie was the wrong guy in this case. |
| Posted by: Glenmore 2009-02-21 11:13 |
| #5 HL Mencken wrote of how a black death row inmate was prepared to be hung with the help of a black preacher who assured him that he would become a white angel in heaven. In a great irony, some of the black preachers of the time were immensely popular because of their dramatic descriptions of Hell. The best of them would have their congregations feeling the lick of the flames and smelling brimstone wafting up from underneath the floorboards. |
| Posted by: Anonymoose 2009-02-21 09:42 |
| #4 WHoa, a death row inmate declares his innocence at the end...to do so otherwise would be impossible after decades of conditioning of the accused by defense attorney saying, "Hey, son we know you didn't do it, so let's provide it". After a while the inmate believes it....it's always someone elses fault; i.e., bad witnesses, cop, parents or a Twinkie. |
| Posted by: HammerHead 2009-02-21 08:34 |
| #3 Used to love driving out Route 50, stopping off at the Hunter's Head in Upperville. Very civilized. |
| Posted by: Besoeker 2009-02-21 07:50 |
| #2 I do love Winchester and it's awesome library. Also Apple Queen FTW. |
| Posted by: .5MT 2009-02-21 07:45 |
| #1 buckle up Eddie, it's the law. |
| Posted by: Unens McGurque aka Broadhead6 2009-02-21 01:30 |