Inmate Spits Out Key During His Execution
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Associated Press
HUNTSVILLE, Texas — A defiant condemned killer who had tried to escape from death row at least twice spit out a handcuff key as lethal drugs began taking effect during his execution Tuesday.
The key fell from Ponchai Wilkerson’s mouth onto the side of his face, where a shocked warden picked it up. Wilkerson was pronounced dead at 6:24 p.m.
Texas Department of Criminal Justice spokesman Larry Fitzgerald described the inch-and-a-half key as a universal handcuff and leg restraint key.
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