Matthew Lee Johnson put to death for burning Nancy Harris in 2012

Texas Man Executed for Killing Elderly Clerk

A Texas man faced execution on Tuesday for the burning death of an elderly store clerk during a robbery in a Dallas suburb back in 2012. In his final words, he expressed a desire to see the “patient of death” once more.

Matthew Lee Johnson was put to death via lethal injection, thirteen years after he set 76-year-old Nancy Harris ablaze while robbing a convenience store in Garland. Unfortunately, she suffered severe burns and succumbed to her injuries a few days later.

Johnson, aged 49, was declared dead at 6:53 p.m. after the lethal drugs were administered, taking about 26 minutes for the protocol to be completed at a state prison in Huntsville.

As the execution drew near, he turned towards the Harris family, who were observing from behind a window, and begged for their forgiveness. “When I look at each of you, I can see her that day,” he said, adding, “I ask for your forgiveness. I was not going to hurt her.”

“I pray that she is the first person I see when I spend my time with my eyes open and forever,” he continued. Johnson also reached out to his wife and daughter, asking them for forgiveness. “I made the wrong choice, made the wrong decision, and now I’ll pay the outcome,” he reflected.

The attack was partially recorded by surveillance cameras, allowing Harris to provide a description of Johnson before the incident left her injured.

During his 2013 trial, Johnson voiced remorse for the crime, branding himself as “the lowest scum on the planet.” He insisted that he was under the influence when he committed the act and claimed he was unaware of his actions at the time.

“I hurt an innocent woman. I took a human life. I was the cause,” he stated during the trial, insisting that he had no intention to kill or harm her.

Johnson’s legal defense claimed he was a drug addict and had faced sexual abuse in his childhood.

Nancy Harris is survived by four sons, 11 grandchildren, and seven great-grandchildren.

Interestingly, Johnson’s execution occurred just hours after Indiana executed another inmate, Benjamin Richie, who had been convicted of killing a police officer in 2000.

Last week, another controversy arose as serial killer Glenn Rogers was in the spotlight after shouting at President Trump. Meanwhile, another inmate, Oscar Smith, is scheduled for execution on Thursday in Tennessee.