Missouri inmate Lance Shockley denied clemency by Gov. Kehoe, execution scheduled for Tuesday
By JoBeth Davis
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BONNE TERRE, Missouri (KMBC) — A man convicted in the death of a Missouri State Highway Patrol Sergeant has been denied clemency by Gov. Mike Kehoe.
Lance Shockley is scheduled to face execution by lethal injection Tuesday in connection with the 2005 murder of MSHP Sgt. Carl DeWayne Graham Jr.
“The murder of Missouri State Highway Patrol Sergeant Carl DeWayne Graham, Jr., who was investigating Lance Shockley’s criminal actions at the time, was an attack not only on a dedicated law enforcement officer, but on the rule of law itself,” Kehoe said in a statement Monday. “Violence against those who risk their lives every day to protect our communities will never be tolerated. Missouri stands firmly with our men and women in uniform.”
Shockley, now 48, was under investigation for his connection to a deadly drunk driving crash in Carter County during which a passenger allegedly riding in the car with Shockley was killed.
Graham was in charge of the investigation into that crash.
In Monday’s release, Kehoe’s office said Shockley went to Graham’s home, where he shot the sergeant from behind, paralyzing him. He was then shot again in his face and shoulder, killing him.
Shockley has maintained his innocence since 2005, with anti-death penalty advocates arguing that Shockley’s trial was “marred with errors” and that the only evidence against him was circumstantial.
Shockley was convicted of first-degree murder with three aggravating factors. His case was reviewed and upheld by the Missouri Supreme Court, the federal district court, the Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals, and the United States Supreme Court.
“Mr. Shockley has received every legal protection afforded to him under the Missouri and United States Constitutions, and his conviction and sentence will remain for his brutal and deliberate crime,” Kehoe said Monday.
Shockley is scheduled to be put to death at the Missouri Diagnostic and Correctional Center in Bonne Terre at 6 p.m. Tuesday.
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