Child Killer's Execution Still On

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (AP) - A man convicted of raping and murdering
an eleven-year-old boy lost an appeal today seeking to halt his
upcoming execution. The Florida Supreme Court rejected Mark Dean
Schwab's claim that lethal injection protocols could cause him
extreme pain and suffering.
If he is put to death Tuesday, Schwab would be the state's first
inmate put to death since a 2006 moratorium on executions after a
botched lethal injection. The appeal was his third successive
request for post-conviction relief.
Schwab was convicted of killing Junny Rios-Martinez Jr. in 1991
after posing as a newspaper reporter who wanted to do an article on
the young surfer from Cocoa. The boy died from choking or
smothering.
The Supreme Court unanimously ruled Schwab failed to allege any
newly discovered evidence that would change its decisions in his
and other prior appeals that also challenged the lethal injection
procedure.

(Copyright 2008 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)