ATLANTA — Georgia is set to execute its only woman on death row. By a majority vote, the Georgia Pardons and Paroles Board denied clemency for Georgia’s only woman on death row for a third time Tuesday.
In a last-ditch effort, a motion was filed late Tuesday evening in Georgia State Supreme Court for a stay of execution for Kelly Gissendaner.
Just after 9 p.m. the State Supreme Court denied the stay of execution for Gissendaner.
The United States Supreme Court denied three appeals for a stay of execution by Gissendaner's attorneys.
Shortly before 9 p.m. Gissendaner's daughter Kayla walked outside of the jail in Jackson, Georgia to thank dozens of supporters who were also asking for a stay of execution for Gissendaner.
"We were not able to see our mom today because the boards of pardon and paroles made us make a choice to either come try and save her life today or go see her. So we chose to try and save her life and they still denied us today, so we want you all to know we are still fighting. Do not lose your faith, this is not over. There is a reason we did not get to see her today and hopefully that’s because we’re going to see her again this weekend. So thank you all,” Kayla Gissendaner told the supporters.
Then the group prayed with Kayla before she went back into the jail.
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Earlier in the day, Gissendaner’s three children made their plea for mercy before the parole board.
For the first time, the convicted killer’s oldest son, Brandon, spoke, presumably making the same argument his younger siblings had made publicly in the weeks leading up to this decision.
“I feel like I haven't had enough time to get to know my mom,” daughter Kayla Gissendaner said in a video released last week. “My brothers and I lost one parent ... I don't know that I can lose another one. I don't know that I can handle that.”
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Kelly Gissendaner was convicted in 1997 for planning the murder of her husband, Doug.
Her boyfriend was convicted of the actual murder, but in a plea deal received life in prison.
The parole board closed its meeting to the public Tuesday, but Channel 2’s Tony Thomas learned Doug Gissendaner's family and Gwinnett County District Attorney Danny Porter spoke by telephone during the hearing.
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The news is devastating to those who've worked with Kelly Gissendaner in prison and say she's changed.
“Kelly's story is a story of transformation,” said Prison Program professor Letitia Campbell. “It’s a loss for all of us, for the state of Georgia, the Department of Corrections and other ministers of the gospel who are her colleagues on the outside of the prison.”
Kelly Gissendaner’s story has even gotten the attention of Pope Francis.
The pope, back in Rome after a six-day visit to the United States, sent a letter Tuesday to the Georgia Pardons and Paroles Board through a representative, Archbishop Carlo Maria Vigano.
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“While not wishing to minimize the gravity of the crime for which Ms. Gissendander has been convicted, and while sympathizing with the victims, I nonetheless implore you, in consideration of the reasons that have been expressed to your board, to commute the sentence to one that would better express both justice and mercy,” Vigano wrote.
Archbishop Wilton Gregory of the Archdiocese of Atlanta held a news conference Tuesday afternoon and said clemency would express both justice and mercy.
Gregory said that he's feeling deep sorrow over the decision to not spare Gissendander's life.
"(I have) sorrow that another individual's life has been taken. Sorrow that another family has to suffer the loss of a loved one. Sorrow that our nation continues to feel that it must impose this type of penalty. But, hope that other jurisdictions will removed the death penalty,” Gregory said. “Nineteen states thus far have removed the death penalty. We hope that Georgia will consider that as a reasonable and merciful option."
The state put executions on hold in March because the lethal injection drug prepared to put Gissendaner to death was cloudy and could cause pain or not be effective.
In mid-April, the Department of Corrections said the drug appeared off because it had been stored in conditions too cold. Otherwise, the drug was fine, Corrections said.
WSBTV
