Lezmond Mitchell: Navajo man on death row executed for 2001 murders as victim's dad sees end of 19-year wait
The only Native American, Lezmond Mitchell, who had been on federal death row was executed on Wednesday, August 26, in Indiana, for the killing of two women back in 2001, the Department of Justice revealed.
Mitchell had no last words before being executed in front of witnesses which also included family members of the two victims he had killed. When asked if he had any last words to say, Mitchell responded and said, "No, I'm good," CBS News reports. He was pronounced dead at 6.29 pm less than half n hour after he was injected with the lethal drug pentobarbital at the US Penitentiary in Terre Haute. In 2003, Mitchell had been found guilty on multiple charges which included murder charges over the deaths of Alyce Slim, 63, and her granddaughter Tiffany Lee, 9.
Slim had been stabbed around 33 times by Mitchell as well as his accomplice after she had given the pair a ride back in 2001. Mitchell and his accomplice had later on slit the child's throat twice and had crushed her head with rocks before dismembering both victims. The attackers had also burned the clothes of their victims. Mitchell had later told law enforcement about where the bodies were after he confessed to the gruesome crime. The accomplice, also a Navajo citizen, was not given the death penalty because of his age and was sentenced to life in prison. Justice Department spokeswoman Kerri Kupec released a statement shortly after the execution and revealed, "Nearly 19 years after Lezmond Mitchell brutally ended the lives of two people, destroying the lives of many others, justice finally has been served."
Tiffany Lee's father, Daniel, attended the execution. He stood next to a lawyer who had read out a statement on his behalf. The statement read, "I have waited 19 years to get justice for my daughter, Tiffany. But I hope this will bring some closure."
The execution of Mitchell is said to be the fourth execution that has taken place this summer. Just as the three men who were put to death before him, Mitchell had also exhausted all possible appeals as a means to try and stop his execution from taking place.
On Wednesday, August 26, the Supreme Court had denied the last attempt made by Mitchell to delay his execution. Mitchell, as well as his victims, had been members of the Navajo Nation. Lee's family members supported his death sentence though tribal leaders from all over the country had opposed his execution.
In fact, Navajo Nation President Jonathan Nez last month asked President Donald Trump clemency for Mitchell, citing the tribe's stance against the death penalty. Navajo leaders argue the US government shouldn't be able to execute Mitchell. Under the Federal Death Penalty Act, the US government can't seek the death penalty for murder committed on tribal land unless said tribe allows it. However, one of the charges that Mitchell was convicted of — carjacking resulting in death — does not require tribal consent under the law because the federal government considers it criminal no matter where it is committed.
Attorneys for Mitchell said, "Today, the federal government added another chapter to its long history of injustices against Native American people. Over the steadfast objection of the Navajo Nation, and despite urgent pleas for clemency from Navajo leaders and many other Native American tribes, organizations, and citizens, the Trump Administration executed Lezmond Mitchell, a Navajo man, for a crime against other Navajo people committed on Navajo land."
Attorney General William Barr announced the decision on the enforcing of the federal death penalty last year. At the time, he said in a statement, "The Justice Department upholds the rule of law — and we owe it to the victims and their families to carry forward the sentence imposed by our justice system."
"Had it not been for the Trump administration, I do not think I would have ever received justice or a sense of finality."