An Oklahoma man convicted of killing his ex-girlfriend and her 7-month-old daughter after setting their home on fire nearly 20 years ago was executed on Thursday.
Execution Details
Raymond Johnson, 52, received a lethal injection at the Oklahoma State Penitentiary for the June 2007 deaths of 24-year-old Brooke Whitaker and her infant daughter, Kya.
Prosecutors stated that following an early morning argument at Whitaker's home in Tulsa, Johnson struck her repeatedly over the head with a metal claw hammer. The attack fractured Whitaker's skull and caused more than 20 lacerations to her face and scalp. Despite her injuries, she remained conscious and pleaded with Johnson to spare her and Kya, who was asleep in a bedroom.
According to documents prepared for Johnson's clemency hearing in April, Whitaker begged him to call 911, let her mother retrieve baby Kya, and consider her other three children.
The Crime
The Oklahoma Attorney General's Office reported that Johnson retrieved a gas can from a backyard tool shed, doused Whitaker and the house with gasoline, ignited a dishtowel, threw it at Whitaker, and fled. Whitaker died from head injuries and smoke inhalation, while her daughter succumbed to severe burns.
Attorney General Gentner Drummond described Johnson as a cruel murderer who inflicted unimaginable pain and suffering on his victims.
Legal Proceedings
Johnson's attorneys did not file a last-minute appeal with the U.S. Supreme Court to halt the execution. His attorney did not respond to multiple requests for comment. Previous appeals argued that Johnson's arrest was illegal, his confession coerced, and his trial lawyer improperly conceded guilt in Whitaker's death without permission.
In April, Oklahoma's Pardon and Parole Board voted unanimously to deny clemency. At the hearing, Johnson apologized to the victims' family, stating he was a changed person. In an interview with Death Penalty Action, he expressed remorse and asked for forgiveness, pointing to his transformed life.
Family Statements
Whitaker's family requested the execution proceed. Logan Kleck, Whitaker's oldest daughter, wrote to the board that executing Johnson would not bring back her mother or sister but would stop him from continuing to hurt them.
Johnson also had a 1996 manslaughter conviction and served nine years of a 20-year sentence. His execution makes him the second person put to death in Oklahoma this year and the 11th in the country.
