Stanley 'Tookie' Williams: Death by Lethal Injection
By: Camie Tyler
Stanley Williams, known as Tookie, is the co-founder of the Crips a gang that was formed in 1971 in Los Angeles. During the following years the Crips battled the Bloods for territory and control of the drug trade. In 1981 Tookie was sentenced for murdering a 23 year old convenience store clerk. Then two weeks later three people who owned a motel were killed both during robberies (www.abcnews.go.com).
Tookie has spent much of his life on Death Row, but has not spent it without trying to change his life. He said in an interview “being caged like an animal made him do some soul searching” (www.Tookie.com). While in prison he has worked with Barbara Becnel to author children’s books that are geared to steer young people away from gangs, drugs, and crime. He has written contracts for a cease fire between rival gangs. Not only are they to stop shooting at each other, but to stop physically and verbally assaulting each other immediately. He has been nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize five times for his work against gangs. There has been a TV movie based on his life with Jamie Foxx as Tookie called Redemption (www.abcnews.go.com).
Tookie has always maintained his innocence and because of the he refuses to apologize for crimes he has not committed (www.npr.org). While he has used all of his appeals he tried to take it to the Supreme Court and they refused to take up the case. His life is now in the hands of the Governor of California, Arnold Schwarzenegger. The Governor is known to not grant clemency, but will he for Tookie?
Tookie had this to say about dying that he is not afraid and “The demon is within. If a man must fight, let it be to the death with the beast that is within himself. I can tell the world that the beast within me is over, I am victorious.” (www.Tookie.com). Tookie is set to die by lethal injection on December 13, 2005 in between 9:30pm and 12:00am in San Quentin. He is 56 years old (www.suntimes.com).
Another fact about the Death Penalty in the United States, on November 30, 2005 the US will hit the 1000th execution since 1976 when it was reinstated (ncadp@democracyinaction.org).