Dr. Jerry Williams, a Stephen F. Austin sociology professor, spoke at the Walls Unit protest of the 200th execution under Governor Rick Perry. Video on YouTube.

Williams’ sister was brutally murdered and her killer only spent 15 years in prison. His remarks at the 200th execution protest was the first time he has spoken publicly about the murder of his sister. He explains why he doesn’t believe in execution. “I hated him. I wanted to see him die. I wanted to see him suffer in prison. And I thought justice would be done only in the way, but what I realized over time was that my hate really diminished me. It damaged me and did nothing for him,” explained Williams.

If you can not see the video below of the Houston protest of the 200th execution under Gov. Rick Perry, you can click here to watch it on YouTube.

From MyFoxHouston:

Terry Lee Hankins was condemned for the 2001 shooting deaths of his two stepchildren at their home in Mansfield. The victims were 12-year-old Devin Galley and 11-year-old Ashley Mason.

Hankins, in his final statement, said: “I am sorry for what I’ve done and for all the pain and suffering my actions caused.” His voice wavered as he said: “Jesus is Lord. All glory to God.”

Hankins surrendered at his girlfriend’s Arlington apartment after a standoff with police who wanted him for gunning down his estranged wife, Tammy, and her two children.

Hankins then told officers he’d also killed his father and half-sister almost a year earlier. Hankins was the 16th condemned prisoner executed this year in Texas.

He was the 200th inmate put to death under Governor Rick Perry. And that milestone brought out anti-death-penalty protestors in downtown Houston.

Gloria Rubac, of the Texas Death Penalty Abolition Movement, admits Hankins’s confessed crimes make him a poor poster child for her cause.

“His case is horrible,” said Rubac, “but he should not be executed. We have enough prisons to lock that man up forever and I sure don’t want him in my neighborhood.”

Rubac believes death penalty opponents are making headway, even in Texas, which executes more inmates than any other state. She points out Harris County hasn’t sent a criminal to Death Row since December 2007, even though it’s the county that has historically condemned more defendants than any other in the state.

Report from a Nacogdoches TV Station of a Delegation Headed to Huntsville to Protest 200th Execution Under Gov Rick Perry.

http://protest200executions.com
http://abolishtexasdeathpenalty.ning.com

Video of TV News Report of Nacogdoches Delegation to 200th Execution Protest in Huntsville.

Dr. Jerry Williams at the Walls Unit protest in Huntsville of the 200th Execution Under Rick Perry

Video of Nacogdoches pastor Kyle Childress at Huntsville Protest of 200th Execution Under Gov Rick Perry

NACOGDOCHES, TX (KTRE) – A Nacogdoches delegation, including SFA students, a professor and a preacher are in Huntsville expressing their opposition to the death penalty. They chose tonight’s execution because if marks the 200th person to die under the state leadership of Governor Rick Perry.

Tuesday a self-described “non-caring monster” is preparing to die. Terry Lee Hankins was condemned for the 2001 slayings of his two stepchildren. The 34-year-old also was wanted for murdering his estranged wife — the children’s mother. Hankins told officers that he also killed his father and half-sister almost a year earlier.

Right now protests and a vigil are going on in Huntsville, as well as other places across the state. Dr. Jerry Williams, a SFA sociology professor is a speaker at the Walls Unit protest. So is Nacogdoches pastor Kyle Childress. The men oppose capital punishment. Childress for moral reasons. “Statistics show that there is an overwhelmingly number of poor and African American and Hispanic people on death row. Much more greater proportion than in the general population. There’s studies that show it’s not a deterrent in crime,” expressed Childress, pastor of Austin Heights Baptist Church.

Williams is also speaking against the death penalty. His sister was brutally murdered and her killer only spent 15 years in prison. He explains why he doesn’t believe in execution. “I hated him. I wanted to see him die. I wanted to see him suffer in prison. And I thought justice would be done only in the way, but what I realized over time was that my hate really diminished me. It damaged me and did nothing for him,” explained Williams.

Texas has executed 438 people since 1982. Arguments for the practice include, it’s a deterrent and provides social protection.

If you can not view the video below of a TV news report on the protest in Austin at the Capitol of the 200th execution, you can click here to watch it on YouTube.

200th execution protests also took place in Houston, Huntsville, Montreal, New Mexico, Paris France (June 3), Brussels Belgium and Leipzig Germany and other cities.

From Fox7News:

Terry Lee Hankins apologized for killing five of his family members before being execute in Huntsville Tuesday night.

His execution marks #200 under Governor Rick Perry–a milestone that’s creating protest across the state.
The 200 names were read aloud on the steps of the Capitol. For each name, a member of the “Campaign to End the Death Penalty” dropped a single candle inside a ceremonial coffin.

“The death penalty is wrong. It doesn’t deter crime. It doesn’t decrease murder or violent crime in Texas,” claims Matthew Gossage, who protested with a poster.

He joined members of the “Campaign to End the Death Penalty” on the same evening Terry Lee Hankins was put to death.

At 6 p.m., a moment of silence marked his execution in Huntsville.

Hankins was convicted for the 2001 slayings of his two step-children and their mother, Tammy Hankins, near Fort Worth. During the investigation, Hankins told officers he had also killed his father and half-sister the year before.

“I just hink the fact that he’s executing at such a speed, when the trend nationally is turning against capital punishment–shame on Governor Perry,” said Laura Brady.

Governor Rick Perry’s Press Secretary released this statement to FOX 7 News:

“Like most Texans, the Governor believes capital punishment is the appropriate punishment for those who commit the most heinous crime.”

Laura Brady responded with, “The death penalty is an embarrassment. It’s inexcusable.”

“I have an innocent brother on Death Row,” Delia Perez Meyer said, “His name is Louis Castro Perez, who’s falsly convicted of murdering three of his friends in September of 1998.”

On the Capitol steps, there are those who are waiting on the fate of loved ones, and waiting on Texas to change its ideals on the death penalty.

Protest the 200th Execution Under Texas Governor Rick Perry

Today, June 2, 2009, the 200th execution under Texas Governor Rick Perry is scheduled to take place. Since he became governor of Texas in December 2000, Perry has allowed more executions to proceed than any other governor in U.S. history. There are protests planned in cities in Texas, Canada and Europe.

In Texas demonstrations will be carried out in Austin, Huntsville and Houston. Other demonstrations will be held in Albuquerque; Paris, France; Leipzig, Germany, Brussels, Belgium, and Montreal, Canada.

In Houston, activists will gather at “The Old Hanging Tree” located at the former site of a county courthouse. This 400-year-old oak tree was likely the site of lynchings in the 1800’s and is now a recognized historic site by the City of Houston. In Huntsville, the protest will be held outside of the death house, the Walls Unit, where the execution will be carried out. In Austin, a demonstration will be held at the Texas Capitol on the sidewalk at 11th and Congress.

In Paris, there will be a protest June 3 on the Place de la Concorde, Tuileries/US Consulate side from 6pm to 7pm.

In Leipzig, Germany, activists organized by Amnesty International will place 200 white paper crosses and 200 candles outside the US Consulate on June 2. Leipzig is a sister city of Houston. In Brussels, Belgium, protesters with banners will be in front of the US Embassy between 6:00 and 7:00 pm. In Montreal there will be a Die-In organized by Amnesty International where the 200 executions will be reenacted.

The Texas anti-death penalty community asks people around the world to focus your attention on Texas and join us in protesting the 200th execution carried out under Rick Perry. Altogether, Texas has executed 438 people since 1982, including 152 under former Texas Governor George W. Bush.

How you can protest the 200th execution under Texas Governor Rick Perry

1) On the day of the 200th execution, call Governor Perry at 512-463-1782 and tell him your opinion on the death penalty. If you live in the U.S., you can use his the form on his website to email him. We suggest you both call him and email him.

2) Attend a protest in your city either on the day of the 200th execution or sometime before. If a protest is not scheduled, you can organize a protest. If you live outside the U.S., organize a protest at the nearest U.S. Embassy or Consulate. Send us a photo or video of your protest by email and we will post it on this website and on YouTube. Or you can upload your photos and videos yourself to our social networking site or directly to our group on YouTube. If your organization is planning a protest, please let us know so that we can list your protest on this site.

3) Sign the petition and add your name to the list of people who are raising their voices to protest the 200th execution under Texas Governor Rick Perry.

4) Donate a symbolic 200 cents towards helping us organize against the Texas death penalty. That is one penny for every execution under Rick Perry. We are asking everyone to donate $2, which is the equivalent of 200 pennies. You are welcome to donate more if you can afford it, but everyone can afford to donate $2.

The artwork at www.protest200executions.com is by German artist Jasmin Hilmer and represents the isolation of Texas in the world community. While most of the rest of the world, including all of Europe, have turned their backs on the use of capital punishment, Texas continues to execute people at a shocking rate.

This campaign is sponsored by Texas Moratorium Network, Texas Death Penalty Abolition Movement, Campaign to End the Death Penalty – Austin and Albuquerque chapters, Students Against the Death Penalty, Texas Death Penalty Education and Resource Center, Amnesty International – Leipzig, the DP Coordination Team of Amnesty International Canada Francophone and the Abolish the Death Penalty Project on Amazee.