Ohio puts child-killer to death in first execution in 3½ years
Girlfriend’s 3-year-old daughter was man’s vicitim
LUCASVILLE, Ohio — Ohio put a child killer to death Wednesday, carrying out the state’s first execution after a 3½-year delay and signaling the possible resumption of capital punishment in the state.
Ronald Phillips was executed by lethal injection without any of the complications that caused the governor to pause scheduled executions.
Phillips was sentenced to die for the 1993 rape and killing of Sheila Marie Evans, his girlfriend’s 3-year-old daughter.
His chin and chest moved slightly and he breathed heavily while the lethal drugs were administered. Prison officials gave Phillips’ time of death as 10:43 a.m., about 10 minutes after he gave his final statement, saying, “Sheila Marie didn’t deserve what I did to her.”
He apologized to the girl’s family, telling them: “I’m sorry you had to live so long with my actions.”
The girl’s half sister said it was the first apology they had heard from Phillips.
Sheila Marie’s aunt, Donna Hudson, said: “Finally, after 24½ years, she can rest in peace.”
Phillips, 43, seemed resigned at the end, looking up the ceiling and closing his eyes.
The execution was delayed for a few minutes so that Phillips could meet with his brother. Earlier, he had spent much of the morning praying, kneeling and reading the Bible. He became emotional with his spiritual adviser and a visiting friend, said JoEllen Smith, a prisons department spokeswoman.
Phillips lost his final appeal when the U.S. Supreme Court on Tuesday denied his requests for more time to pursue legal arguments, including a challenge of the state’s new three-drug execution method, which includes a sedative used in some problematic executions in Ohio and elsewhere.
He also argued that his age at the time — he was 19 — should have been a consideration for mercy. The nation’s high court has banned the execution of people under 18.