Ponchai Wilkerson
Encyclopedia
Ponchai Wilkerson (also Ponchai Kamau, Kamau Wilkerson, or Ponchai "Kamau" Wilkerson) was a convicted murder
er executed by lethal injection
by the U.S. state
of Texas
. He was convicted for the November 28, 1990 murder of jeweler Chung Myong Yi. He was convicted by a jury on July 16, 1991 and ten days later sentenced to death
by the same jury.
Wilkerson, of African-American and Thai
descent, was born in Houston, Texas
. Not much is known about Wilkerson's early childhood; he later grew up in the Fort Bend-Houston area east of Missouri City, Texas
, attending public schools in the Fort Bend Independent School District
. Ponchai dropped out of Willowridge High School
in 1988.
On November 28, 1990, Wilkerson and Wilton Bethony entered Chung Myong Yi's jewellery shop Royal Gold Jewelry Store in Houston, Texas. They had been on a crime spree for a month. Wilkerson left briefly twice, and pulled a Glock
pistol
from his jacket upon returning the second time and fired the gun without warning at Myong Yi's temple from a distance of 12 inches (30 cm). During the trial, Wilkerson would state that he had fired the gun in self defense after becoming alarmed with jeweler's movements behind the counter. They then smashed the display cases and grabbed rings and necklaces.
The Texas Court of Criminal Appeals
affirmed his conviction and sentenced on December 12, 1994. He also appealed to the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit
and Supreme Court of the United States
, who both denied his appeals.
During Thanksgiving Day, 1998, Wilkerson and seven other death row
inmates were involved in an attempted prison break where death row inmate Martin Gurule was the only one who managed to escape the facility but drowned in a nearby river.
Wilkerson exhausted his final appeal to Judge Jan Krocker in February 2000, a dramatic scene involving community activist Njeri Shakur (member of the Texas Death Penalty Abolition Movement and the Allen Parkway Village Residents Council) shouting at Judge Krocker led to a contempt charge against Shakur; she served 30 days in the Harris County Jail albeit several demonstrations outside the Harris County Courthouse. Shakur became friends with Ponchai when on death row, along with Deloyd Parker, Jr. (the founder of the S.H.A.P.E. Community Center).
On February 21, 2000, Wilkerson and fellow death row inmate Howard Guidry took guard Jeanette Bledsoe hostage
at the Terrell Unit (now Allan B. Polunsky Unit) outside Livingston, Texas. Members of the National Black United Front
and the S.H.A.P.E. Center demanded that Wilkerson release the hostage. Thirteen hours later, the guard was released unharmed.
On the day of his execution, Wilkerson refused to leave his cell at the Terrell Unit prison near Livingston, Texas
. Guards were forced to use Mace
-like gas and carry him to and from the van that took him to the Hunstville Unit. He did not give a last meal
or any instructions on the disposal of his body. When asked if he had a final statement by the warden he responded:
After the drugs were administered, Wilkerson spit out an inch-and-a-half universal handcuff and leg restraint key. He was pronounced dead at 6:24 p.m..
In September 2005, five years after Wilkerson's death, a car seat stored in the Houston Police Evidence Room was revealed in the wake of the Houston Police Crime Lab scandal. The car seat was never entered as evidence
in Wilkerson's original trial.
Murder
Murder is the unlawful killing, with malice aforethought, of another human being, and generally this state of mind distinguishes murder from other forms of unlawful homicide...
er executed by lethal injection
Lethal injection
Lethal injection is the practice of injecting a person with a fatal dose of drugs for the express purpose of causing the immediate death of the subject. The main application for this procedure is capital punishment, but the term may also be applied in a broad sense to euthanasia and suicide...
by the U.S. state
U.S. state
A U.S. state is any one of the 50 federated states of the United States of America that share sovereignty with the federal government. Because of this shared sovereignty, an American is a citizen both of the federal entity and of his or her state of domicile. Four states use the official title of...
of Texas
Texas
Texas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...
. He was convicted for the November 28, 1990 murder of jeweler Chung Myong Yi. He was convicted by a jury on July 16, 1991 and ten days later sentenced to death
Death Sentence
Death Sentence is a short story by the American science-fiction writer Isaac Asimov. It was first published in the November 1943 issue of Astounding Science Fiction and reprinted in the 1972 collection The Early Asimov.-Plot summary:...
by the same jury.
Wilkerson, of African-American and Thai
Thailand
Thailand , officially the Kingdom of Thailand , formerly known as Siam , is a country located at the centre of the Indochina peninsula and Southeast Asia. It is bordered to the north by Burma and Laos, to the east by Laos and Cambodia, to the south by the Gulf of Thailand and Malaysia, and to the...
descent, was born in Houston, Texas
Houston, Texas
Houston is the fourth-largest city in the United States, and the largest city in the state of Texas. According to the 2010 U.S. Census, the city had a population of 2.1 million people within an area of . Houston is the seat of Harris County and the economic center of , which is the ...
. Not much is known about Wilkerson's early childhood; he later grew up in the Fort Bend-Houston area east of Missouri City, Texas
Missouri City, Texas
Missouri City is a city located in the U.S. state of Texas within the metropolitan area. The city is mostly in Fort Bend County with a small portion within Harris County. As of the 2000 U.S...
, attending public schools in the Fort Bend Independent School District
Fort Bend Independent School District
The Fort Bend Independent School District, also known as Fort Bend ISD or FBISD, is a school district system in the U.S. state of Texas based in the city of Sugar Land....
. Ponchai dropped out of Willowridge High School
Willowridge High School (Houston)
Willowridge High School is a secondary school in Houston, Texas, United States and part of the Fort Bend Independent School District. Willowridge serves grades 9 through 12....
in 1988.
On November 28, 1990, Wilkerson and Wilton Bethony entered Chung Myong Yi's jewellery shop Royal Gold Jewelry Store in Houston, Texas. They had been on a crime spree for a month. Wilkerson left briefly twice, and pulled a Glock
Glock
Glock Ges.m.b.H. is a weapons manufacturer headquartered in Deutsch-Wagram, Austria, named after its founder, Gaston Glock...
pistol
Pistol
When distinguished as a subset of handguns, a pistol is a handgun with a chamber that is integral with the barrel, as opposed to a revolver, wherein the chamber is separate from the barrel as a revolving cylinder. Typically, pistols have an effective range of about 100 feet.-History:The pistol...
from his jacket upon returning the second time and fired the gun without warning at Myong Yi's temple from a distance of 12 inches (30 cm). During the trial, Wilkerson would state that he had fired the gun in self defense after becoming alarmed with jeweler's movements behind the counter. They then smashed the display cases and grabbed rings and necklaces.
The Texas Court of Criminal Appeals
Texas Court of Criminal Appeals
The Texas Court of Criminal Appeals is the court of last resort for all criminal matters in the State of Texas, United States. The Court, which is based in the Supreme Court Building in Downtown Austin, is composed of a Presiding Judge and eight judges....
affirmed his conviction and sentenced on December 12, 1994. He also appealed to the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit
United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit
The United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit is a federal court with appellate jurisdiction over the district courts in the following districts:* Eastern District of Louisiana* Middle District of Louisiana...
and Supreme Court of the United States
Supreme Court of the United States
The Supreme Court of the United States is the highest court in the United States. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all state and federal courts, and original jurisdiction over a small range of cases...
, who both denied his appeals.
During Thanksgiving Day, 1998, Wilkerson and seven other death row
Death row
Death row signifies the place, often a section of a prison, that houses individuals awaiting execution. The term is also used figuratively to describe the state of awaiting execution , even in places where no special facility or separate unit for condemned inmates exists.After individuals are found...
inmates were involved in an attempted prison break where death row inmate Martin Gurule was the only one who managed to escape the facility but drowned in a nearby river.
Wilkerson exhausted his final appeal to Judge Jan Krocker in February 2000, a dramatic scene involving community activist Njeri Shakur (member of the Texas Death Penalty Abolition Movement and the Allen Parkway Village Residents Council) shouting at Judge Krocker led to a contempt charge against Shakur; she served 30 days in the Harris County Jail albeit several demonstrations outside the Harris County Courthouse. Shakur became friends with Ponchai when on death row, along with Deloyd Parker, Jr. (the founder of the S.H.A.P.E. Community Center).
On February 21, 2000, Wilkerson and fellow death row inmate Howard Guidry took guard Jeanette Bledsoe hostage
Hostage
A hostage is a person or entity which is held by a captor. The original definition meant that this was handed over by one of two belligerent parties to the other or seized as security for the carrying out of an agreement, or as a preventive measure against certain acts of war...
at the Terrell Unit (now Allan B. Polunsky Unit) outside Livingston, Texas. Members of the National Black United Front
National Black United Front
The National Black United Front is an African-American organization formed in the late 1970s in Brooklyn, New York. Its headquarters are in South Shore, Chicago, Illinois....
and the S.H.A.P.E. Center demanded that Wilkerson release the hostage. Thirteen hours later, the guard was released unharmed.
On the day of his execution, Wilkerson refused to leave his cell at the Terrell Unit prison near Livingston, Texas
Livingston, Texas
Livingston is a town in Polk County, Texas, United States. The population was 5,433 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Polk County. Livingston was settled in 1835 as Springfield. Its name was changed to Livingston and became the county seat of Polk County in 1846.The Alabama-Coushatta...
. Guards were forced to use Mace
Mace (spray)
Chemical Mace is a tear gas in the form of an aerosol spray which propels a lachrymatory agent mixed with a volatile solvent. It is sometimes used as a self-defense device...
-like gas and carry him to and from the van that took him to the Hunstville Unit. He did not give a last meal
Last meal
The last meal is a customary part of a condemned prisoner's last day. Often, the day of, or before, the appointed time of execution, the prisoner receives a last meal, as well as religious rites, if they desire. In the United States, inmates generally may not ask for an alcoholic drink...
or any instructions on the disposal of his body. When asked if he had a final statement by the warden he responded:
- "This is not a capital case"
After the drugs were administered, Wilkerson spit out an inch-and-a-half universal handcuff and leg restraint key. He was pronounced dead at 6:24 p.m..
In September 2005, five years after Wilkerson's death, a car seat stored in the Houston Police Evidence Room was revealed in the wake of the Houston Police Crime Lab scandal. The car seat was never entered as evidence
Evidence
Evidence in its broadest sense includes everything that is used to determine or demonstrate the truth of an assertion. Giving or procuring evidence is the process of using those things that are either presumed to be true, or were themselves proven via evidence, to demonstrate an assertion's truth...
in Wilkerson's original trial.