A 62-year-old American, Duane Owen, was executed on Thursday at Raiford Prison in Florida. He spent a whopping 39 years on death row. Owen was charged with the murders of a 38-year-old woman and a 14-year-old babysitter. The teenager’s sister – then barely 10 years old – took the floor after the execution. The state finally wrote the last chapter of my sister’s book.
The man was sentenced to death for raping and murdering 38-year-old Georgianna Wilson in 1984. Her children were sleeping in the next room. That same year, he also murdered 14-year-old babysitter Karen Slattery. Two other victims managed to escape death.
The execution was done with an injection. This is the twelfth execution of the death penalty in the US this year. This only happens in the states of Texas, Oklahoma, Missouri and Florida. The US state of Florida has no fewer than 300 death row inmates. Owen was one of the longest-serving death row inmates on death row.
The Florida Supreme Court rejected a clemency request last week. According to Owen’s lawyer, he was not aware of the facts he committed. He stated that he was delusional at the time of the facts, but the court did not follow that view.
Sister of victim present
Debbi Johnson, the sister of the 14-year-old girl who was killed, read a moving testimony after the execution. She said she “unfortunately has few memories of her sister”, “but Owen’s act changed everything in her life”. As difficult as she was emotionally, Johnson wanted to be present at the execution at all costs. “He looked my sister in the eye when she died. I will now look him in the eye when he dies.”
According to her, the state waited too long to carry out the sentence. The state of Florida finally wrote the final chapter of Karen’s book. “Our family can now close the book, put it away and try to move on.”
LOOK. Victim’s Sister Reacts After Killer’s Execution
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