RICHMOND, Va. (AP) — Virginia’s Democratic governor says he won’t spare the life of an inmate whose lawyers say was under the influence of delusions when he killed two men during an escape in 2006.
A statement issued by Gov. Terry McAuliffe’s office said he has declined a clemency petition in the case of 35-year-old William Morva, who is scheduled to receive a lethal injection at 9 p.m. EDT Thursday. The statement says the governor didn’t find a substantial enough reason to intervene.
Morva’s attorneys have said the man suffers from a profound mental illness that made him believe his life in jail was in danger when he went on the killing spree. Morva’s attorneys said jurors weren’t aware how severe his mental illness was before they sentenced him to death.
Jailed in 2005 on accusations that he tried to rob a convenience store, Morva was taken to a hospital to treat an injury. There, he attacked a sheriff’s deputy, stole the deputy’s gun and shot an unarmed security guard before fleeing. A day later, Morva shot another sheriff’s deputy and was later found in a ditch with the deputy’s gun nearby.
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