Ronnie Lee Gardner: Utah Execution by Firing Squad
After a judge denied his last-minute appeal, convicted murderer Ronnie Lee Gardner will become the first man put to death by firing squad in the United States in 14 years.
Ronnie Lee Gardner (Trent Nelson / AP Photo)
Gardner, who has already said goodbye to his family, has been on death row since 1985 after he shot an attorney in a courthouse where he was being tried for a separate murder. But police had been aware of Gardner long before he committed two murders. By age 10, when he had been sniffing glue and gasoline for four years, he became addicted to heroin and LSD. He was also assisting his stepfather as a lookout on robberies. And at the age of 11, he was sent to live in a mental institution for 18 months. Now he claims he is remorseful and wants to help young people avoid repeating his mistakes. "There's no better example in this state of what not to do," he said.
Click Below to Watch a Report on Gardner’s Recent Appeal
Click Below to Watch a Report on the Murders Gardner Committed
Xtra Insight: Lawrence Schiller: Eyewitness to the Firing Squad
Xtra Insight: Big Fat Story: Behind Utah’s Firing Squads
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