Willie James Pye was put to death by lethal injection for the 1993 abduction, rape and killing of his ex-girlfriend.
A Georgia man convicted of the killing of his former girlfriend three decades ago was put to death Wednesday evening in the state’s first execution in more than four years.
Pye was mostly still as the drugs began to flow. He began exhaling rapid bursts of air about a half-dozen times, causing his cheeks to expand and his lips to quiver each time. Then, he was still. Several minutes later, the warden walked into the death chamber and announced the time of death.Pye’s lawyers filed late appeals urging the U.S. Supreme Court to step in, but the justices unanimously rejected to stop the execution.
The group drove to a motel, where they raped Yarbrough and then left the motel with her in the car, prosecutors said. They turned onto a dirt road and Pye ordered Yarbrough out of the car, made her lie face down and shot her three times, according to court filings. Lawyers representing Pye also wrote in previous court filings that their client was raised in extreme poverty in a home without indoor plumbing or enough food or clothing. His childhood was characterized by neglect and abuse by family members who were often drunk, his lawyers wrote.
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