In spite of allegations that racism affected his conviction, a man who had been given the capital penalty for the murder of a police officer was put to death in Texas on Wednesday night.
Wesley Ruiz, 43, was declared dead after a lethal injection at the prison in Huntsville, Texas, at 6:41 pm local time, according to the Texas Department of Criminal Justice (1241 GMT).
In 2007, Dallas, Texas, police officers pursued Ruiz through the city’s streets because they thought his car had been involved in a killing.
Ruiz shot police officer Mark Nix as he attempted to smash the glass of his vehicle with his baton towards the conclusion of the pursuit. Nix was shot and died.
According to local media, Ruiz claimed throughout his trial that he shot in self-defense out of fear for his life. But the jury gave him the death penalty.
Ruiz’s last remarks, as reported by the Texas Department of Criminal Justice, were, “I would want to apologize to Mark and the Nix family. I wish this would bring us closer.
“I want to thank my family and friends in every country for their support. My children: Be strong and keep up the good work; don’t worry about me; everything will be OK. Okay Warden, I’m prepared to ride.
After Ruiz’s conviction, his attorneys attempted many failed appeals.
TRIBUNAL DECISION
As the execution date drew near, defense attorneys contended in an urgent request that jurors’ assessments of Ruiz’s threat were based on “overtly racist” evidence and “blatantly anti-Hispanic prejudices.”
They said in court documents that one jury had called him “an animal,” “a rabid dog,” and thought the Hispanics at the trial were “gang members.”
Their case was thrown out at trial and on appeal, and the US Supreme Court was asked to provide a last-ditch reprieve.
In a separate complaint, numerous Texas death row convicts claimed that the state’s Department of Criminal Justice had extended the expiry dates of the fatal drugs used in executions. Ruiz had joined that action as well.
Since the US Constitution forbids cruel and unusual punishment, they claim that employing outmoded medications runs the potential of inflicting unjustified pain.
The officials stated that there is no issue with their pentobarbital supplies.
Ruiz is the fourth prisoner to be executed in the United States this year after the Supreme Court declined to block the execution.
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