Hang 'Em High
Considering the following "Saddam Timeline:"
- 12/13/03 - Captured by US forces.
- 10/19/05 - Trial for crimes against humanity begins
- 11/05/06 - Sentenced to death
- 12/26/06 - Appeals court upholds death sentence
- 12/30/06 - Execution
There are 168 inmates awaiting rulings on appeals to their death sentences in the state of Oklahoma. Eight are awaiting retrial or new sentencing hearings. One of those inmates is a sleazebag named Corey Hamilton (pictured right). The Oklahoma Court of Criminal Appeals recently set a Jan. 9 execution date for 37-year-old Tulsa County killer. Hamilton was convicted of the Aug 17, 1992 killings of four individuals, each of whom were shot in the back of the head at point-blank range, during a robbery of the restaurant where they worked. The four men stole $2100 before killing the employees.
Co-defendant, Donnie Eugene Daniels testified against Hamilton, naming him as the sole gunman. Daniels recieved five life sentences for his part in the robbery/murders. Another co-defendant, Hamilton's brother, received four no-parole life sentences and one-life sentence; the fourth defendant in the case is serving four life sentences. Corey Hamilton is in the fifth stage of appeals.
Before I make my point / finish my rant, I'd like you to "meet" Hamilton's victims:
Joseph Gooch was an only child; he was 17 when a bullet to the head cut short his life. Gooch was a junior at Edison High School who liked working on cars, was second-chair trumpet in the band. He had hoped to join the U.S. Air Force and become an aerospace engineer. It was his third day at the restaurant.
Ted Kindley graduated from Rogers High School and was attending Tulsa Junior College. He took a second job to pay for college, but was given a raise at Lee's so he could quit the second job. He was 19 when he died.
Sendy Lara was 27 and a young mother who left behind three children: Amanda, 6; Gilbert Jr., 3; and Miranda, 18 months. She was not scheduled to work that evening- the restaurant called her in.
Stephen Lee Williams' mother, Janice Ramsey wonders what her 24-year-old son would have been like had he not been shot that night.
None of these people were given an "appeal"; instead they were herded into the restaurant's freezer, and shot execution style. No second chance. No nothing! And now I hear that poor little Corey Hamilton is claiming "cruel and unusual punishment" should the execution by lethal injection be carried out. Hamilton's attorneys asked the court to delay the execution, contending Oklahoma's injection procedure creates a severe and unnecessary risk of failure and conscious physical suffering. FOR CRYIN' OUT LOUD! He murdered four people in cold blood-- didn't ask them if THEY thought it was cruel or might cause "physical suffering!!!!" (Note: I have never experienced it, but I have to imagine that being shot in the head with a gun at close range would cause PHYSICAL SUFFERING!)
Personally, I don't give a hoot about Hamilton's (or any of the other convicted killers on Oklahoma's death row) Eighth Amendment rights. It's been too long! Hang him. Inject him. Put him in front of a firing squad OR all of the aforementioned. This appeals mess where a murderer sits around for years crying about their "rights" is ridiculous (in Hamilton's case 14 years)!
Where's the number for that Iraqi "hanging squad?"
(Biographical sketches of victims and details of Corey Hamilton's crime take from various articles in the Tulsa World)
Oh, yeah...Happy New Year.
6 comments:
sounds unamerican to me...you dis tHE constitution of the united states and still consider yourself a patriot? You're a disgrace and a traitor to democratic values - FOR SHAME!
Not only do I consider myself a "patriot" (not sure where I referred to myself that way, but...) I also consider myself capable of recognizing a slug when I see one. Corey Hamilton is a SLUG!
If you are not intelligent enough to understand the difference in his hogtieing four innocent people and then shooting them in the head at point blank range versus lying on a gurney and being sedated to death, then I guess we just don't see eye to eye on this one. Corey Hamilton suffered NOTHING compared to what he imposed on his victims.
Try explaining your logic to Sendy Lara's three children or Joseph Gooch's parents as to why their loved ones weren't around the past 14 years thanks to Corey Hamilton.
God Bless America.
just because you abhor what he did (which both of us do) you can't trash and
throw away the constitution because of these feelings...you lose when you allow
someone like this to trash your values and he documents upon which they are
founded...you have to be better than them -- no the same as them...
Sorry. We're just not going to see eye-to-eye on this one. I had a cousin that was killed when he was 19 years old; he would be 49 today. The shooter (there were two witnesses and he confessed) walked on a technicality.
I don't understand people that seem to be more concerned with the "rights" of murderers than the rights of their victims. I cannot imagine the horror of being tied up and "waiting my turn" to be shot in the head, as Hamilton's victims were forced to do. What right did Corey Hamilton have to execute those people in that fashion?
Thanks for stopping by, but it's obvious this conversation is going nowhere. I will continue to push for the death penalty...and I'm sure you will continue to oppose it. That's America.
Well, my name is Amanda Lara. I am the daughter of Sendy Lara, and I am 24 years old now. My mother was murdered when I was 6 years old! I witnessed Corey Hamiltons execution, and I can honestly say that I did not find closure. I stood there and watched him die right in front of me, and his "last words" meant nothing to me. Last weekend was Mothers day, and I usually go to the cemetery but this year I made a cd of all the songs that remind me of my mom. When my son fell asleep on saturday night, I went to my room and listened to that cd all night on repeat! My bedroom light was off, and I know that it may be hard to imagine how even after all these years...IT HURTS SO BAD!! IT FEELS LIKE THIS ALL JUST HAPPENED YESTERDAY!! I would do anything to have my mother back! I always find myself thinking about her. I finally got all of my VHS home videos converted into DVDs, but I keep her memory alive through videos and pictures. My son is 4 years old now, and he caught me crying the other day. It was our first discussion about what happened to his grandma. It was the hardest thing I ever had to do by far! I told him that god took grandma to heaven, and that she is in a better place now. My son looked up at me with a confused expression on his face. He replied, "well mom, just go to heaven and get grandma back from god!" I cried myself to sleep that night. My mother was a wonderful person, and I miss her so much! I have always wanted to know one thing, I wish I could've spoke with with Corey Hamilton...I just wanted to know what her last words were...Rest in peace mom...We miss you...
Amanda:
I am so sorry for your loss. I worked not far from Lee's when this occurred. I still drive by the restaurant--stop sometimes too--and I think about the four people who lost their lives that evening because of the selfish, heartless actions of Corey Hamilton and Donnie Daniels.
I'm sorry you have not had closure. For what's it's worth, I will be praying for you. I can't imagine what Mother's Day must be like for you and the others.
Thanks for stopping by and "putting a face" on this story. It is so easy to forget that, although this happened so many years ago, the effects of that evening continue on.
God bless you and your family.
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