Oldest California Death Row Inmate Executed

SAN QUENTIN, Calif. — California’s oldest death row inmate — and the second oldest death row inmate in the United States — was executed by lethal injection Tuesday.

Clarence Ray Allen, 76, who was legally blind and nearly deaf, was pronounced dead at 12:38 a.m. He regularly used a wheelchair, but he was able to walk into the death chamber without assistance. In addition to his other ailments, he had a heart attack in September.

Allen was sentenced to death for a triple murder he planned while serving a life sentence for his part in the 1977 murder of his son’s 17-year-old girlfriend. Allen had the girl killed because he was afraid she would tell police about a burglary he and his accomplices committed at a Fresno, Calif., grocery store.

While serving his sentence, Allen enlisted an inmate scheduled to be paroled to commit the triple murder, which involved witnesses who testified against Allen.

During the appeals process, Allen’s lawyers introduced two new arguments that had never been addressed by the U.S. Supreme Court. They claimed that executing a man suffering from so many health problems would violated the U.S. Constitution’s policy against cruel and unusual punishment and the 23 years Allen spent on death row was also a form of cruel and unusual punishment.

The court ruled against both arguments and Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger denied a request for clemency.

“Allen’s crimes are the most dangerous sort because they attack the justice system itself,” Schwarzenegger said. “The passage of time does not excuse Allen from the jury’s punishment.”