Internet Sources:

Texas Department of Criminal Justice - Executed Offenders (John Thomas Satterwhite)

Texas Department of Criminal Justice

Texas Attorney General

MEDIA ADVISORY: John T. Satterwhite Scheduled to be Executed.

AUSTIN - Texas Attorney General John Cornyn offers the following information on John T. Satterwhite who is scheduled to be executed after 6 p.m., Wednesday August 16th:

John T. Satterwhite was convicted and sentenced to death for the March 1979 murder of 54 year-old Mary Francis Davis. On the morning of March 12, 1979, San Antonio Police were dispatched to a local convenience store. When they arrived they found Davis in a bathroom stall, leaning against a wall, with gunshot wounds on either side of her head at the temple. A pack of cigarettes and an open soda container were found on the store's counter. A set of keys, a purse, and a roll of pennies were found on the floor behind the cash register. More than $600 was missing from the cash register and the last entry on the cash register tape reflected a 79 cent purchase.

The day after Davis' murder, police stopped Satterwhite for speeding. At the time of the arrest, Sharon Bell was a passenger in Satterwhite's car. Bell claimed that a gun police found in the car was hers. She was arrested for unlawfully carrying a weapon. A few days later, Bell was arrested again. During an interview with police, she said that she had been involved in the robbery and murder of Mary Francis Davis, but said that Satterwhite was the person who shot and killed Davis.

EVIDENCE

Sharon Bell told police that although she was involved in the robbery and murder of Mary Francis Davis, Satterwhite was the person who shot and killed Davis. Bell testified at Satterwhite's trial about how the two of them went to the convenience store. Bell testified that after they entered the store, Satterwhite, pulled a gun and demanded money from Davis. Bell said Davis fully cooperated and told Satterwhite there was more money in the safe in the back room. Bell testified that she and Satterwhite then escorted Davis to the back and got money from the vault. Bell said that as she was heading for the door, she saw Satterwhite put the gun to Davis' temple and heard Davis ask Satterwhite not to shoot her. Bell said shortly thereafter she heard two or three gunshots. As Bell and Satterwhite drove away from the store, Bell asked Satterwhite why he had shot the clerk. Satterwhite told Bell that he did not want to leave any witnesses.

The gun recovered from Satterwhite's car the day after the murder had been sold to Satterwhite's mother and was determined to have fired the bullets that killed Mary Francis Davis. Two witnesses identified Satterwhite as the person they saw in the convenience store the morning of the murder. One of the witnesses also identified Bell as being with Satterwhite. This witness saw Satterwhite and Bell make the 79 cent purchase that was the last entry found on the cash register tape.

APPEALS TIME-LINE

March 10, 1993 - Texas Court of Criminal Appeals affirmed Satterwhite's conviction and denied rehearing on June 9, 1993.
Nov. 8, 1993 - U.S. Supreme Court denied Satterwhite's petition for writ of certiorari.
June 26, 1996 - The trial court recommended denying Satterwhite's claims filed Feb. 22, 1994. On the basis of the trial court's recommendation, the Court of Criminal Appeals denied habeas relief.
Dec. 13, 1996 - Satterwhite filed his second federal petition for writ of habeas corpus in the United States District Court for the Western District of Texas, San Antonio Division.
Sept. 25, 1998 - District Court denied federal habeas relief and also denied Satterwhite permission to appeal.
Jan. 7, 2000 - United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit denied Satterwhite permission to appeal.
Feb. 3, 2000 - The Court of Appeals denied motion for rehearing and a motion for stay of proceedings on Feb. 7, 2000.
June 29, 2000 - U.S. Supreme Court denied Satterwhite's petition for writ of certiorari.
Satterwhite has filed a petition for clemency with the Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles.

PRIOR CRIMINAL HISTORY

Eight law enforcement officers testified at the punishment phase of Satterwhite's trial, that Satterwhite had a bad reputation and was known for not being a law-abiding citizen. A state prison guard testified at the punishment phase of Satterwhite's trial, about an incident where Satterwhite had started a fire in his cell. When the guard told Satterwhite to put out the fire, Satterwhite threw hot water on him, causing second-degree burns to the guard's face, neck and chest.

A deputy sheriff testified at Satterwhite's punishment phase that at a court proceeding in January 1987, Satterwhite threatened to kill the trial judge and Assistant District Attorney. A county jailer who testified at Satterwhite's punishment phase said that one day when Satterwhite was angry for not receiving a newspaper, he threatened to beat up the officer and said "someone should kill deputies who don't do their jobs."

Satterwhite's step-father testified at the punishment phase that in June 1978, he had locked Satterwhite out of the house. In response, Satterwhite shot his step-father twice through the door, hitting him in the chest. Satterwhite's step-father was seriously wounded.

Evidence was presented that Satterwhite had a conviction for burglary and a 1970 conviction for robbery with a firearm. Satterwhite also had his parole revoked in May 1974. Evidence was presented that Satterwhite was involved in an attempted armed robbery of a liquor store, three days after murdering Mary Francis Davis.

ProDeathPenalty.Com

John Satterwhite a San Antonio-area mechanic, was convicted in the March 12, 1979, robbery-slaying of convenience store clerk Mary Francis Davis. Mary was shot twice after she surrendered cash from the register and a store vault at gunpoint. Satterwhite and a female accomplice, Sharon Bell, were stopped the next day for speeding, and the murder weapon was found in the glove box. Bell was paroled after seven years in prison. Satterwhite was convicted and condemned in two separate trials.

Satterwhite appeared worried about his victim's family in the hour before he was executed by injection. "What I want to say is I have remorse and I'm really sorry about what happened to that family," John Satterwhite, 53, said in a telephone call to The Associated Press less than an hour before he was strapped to the Texas death chamber gurney for killing Mary Francis Davis, 54. Satterwhite declined to make a final statement in the death chamber and was pronounced dead at 6:29 p.m. Prison officials generally allow an inmate a few final calls to relatives preceding an execution, but a call to the media from a prisoner is unprecedented. "I wanted them to know that I hope my remorse does them good. But would it help them any? No," Satterwhite said in the phone call.

Satterwhite already had been arrested 8 times and had served a prison term for burglary and robbery by assault when he was charged with the murder after walking into the Lone Star Ice and Food Store in San Antonio under the guise of buying a pack of cigarettes and a soft drink -- a 79-cent purchase. Davis was found seated on a toilet, a bullet through each temple. "I wouldn't say I'm totally innocent," Satterwhite said from death row. "I'm guilty of some things." Asked about the shooting, he replied: "There's a possibility I could be the person that did it. ... I can't say I did or didn't."

Texas Execution Information Center

John Thomas Satterwhite, 53, was executed by lethal injection on 16 August in Huntsville, Texas for the murder of a convenience store clerk.

In March 1979, Satterwhite, then 32, and Sharon Renne Bell, 23, robbed a San Antonio convenience store at gunpoint. Satterwhite shot the clerk, Mary Francis Davis, after she gave the robbers $600 from the cash register and store vault. The next day, the two were pulled over for speeding. Officers found a gun in their car. Bell said it was hers and was arrested for unlawfully carrying a weapon. Later, the gun was determined to be the murder weapon, and Bell fingered Satterwhite as the killer. In court, Bell testified that as she was leaving the store, she saw Satterwhite hold the gun against Davis' head, she heard Davis plead for her life, then she heard two or three shots. Bell also testified that Davis had fully cooperated with the two, but Satterwhite told her he didn't want to leave any witnesses.

Satterwhite had eight prior arrests and four convictions. He was convicted of robbery in 1970 and given ten years on probation. He was convicted of armed robbery in 1974 and served three years of a six-year prison sentence. His other convictions were for burglary and petty larceny. Satterwhite and Bell were also believed by police to be responsible for a string of other robberies in San Antonio, including another where a clerk was killed. It was further shown at trial that Satterwhite once burned a prison guard by throwing hot water on him, that he once shot his stepfather, and that three days after Davis' murder -- after Bell had already been arrested -- he was involved in another attempted armed robbery of a liquor store. Sharon Bell was convicted of aggravated robbery and sentenced to 20 years in prison. She served seven years and was paroled in 1986. She was discharged from parole in March 1999, upon the completion of her sentence.

In 1988, the U.S. Supreme Court removed Satterwhite's death sentence because he was not allowed to visit with a lawyer before taking a psychiatric test. Results of the test were used to show the jury that he was a continuing threat to society, which is an essential factor in death penalty sentences. Satterwhite was tried and given the death penalty again. The U.S. Supreme Court rejected his appeal of this sentence in June. In a recent death-row interview with Michael Graczyk of the Associated Press, Satterwhite was evasive about his role in the killing. "I wouldn't say I'm totally innocent." Satterwhite said. "I'm guilty of some things." When asked about Davis' murder, he replied, "There's a possibility I could be the person that did it. ... I can't say I did or didn't." He claimed he was discriminated against because he was male, whereas Bell was not convicted of capital murder because she was female.

As the hour of his execution approached, Satterwhite decided to elaborate on his feelings to the media. Prison officials generally allow a condemned inmate a few final telephone calls to relatives on the afternoon of his execution. Satterwhite used this time to call the Associated Press and asked to speak again with Graczyk. He said, "What I want to say is, I have remorse and I'm really sorry about what happened to that family." He also spoke kindly of the prison chaplain and said, "I'm at peace." At his execution, Satterwhite declined to make a final statement. He was pronounced dead at 6:29 p.m.

Abeline ReporterNews.Com

HUNTSVILLE, Texas (AP) — A ninth-grade dropout with an extensive arrest record worried about his victim's family in the moments before he was put to death Wednesday evening for murdering a San Antonio convenience store clerk more than 21 years ago.

“What I want to say is I have remorse and I'm really sorry about what happened to that family,” John Satterwhite, 53, said in a telephone call to The Associated Press less than an hour before he was strapped to the Texas death chamber gurney for killing Mary Francis Davis, 54. Satterwhite declined to make a final statement in the death chamber and was pronounced dead at 6:29 p.m., nine minutes after the lethal drugs began flowing into veins in his hands. Prison officials generally allow an inmate a few final calls to relatives preceding an execution, but a call to the media from a prisoner is unprecedented. “I wanted them to know that I hope my remorse does them good. But would it help them any? No,” he said, after asking to speak with an AP reporter who interviewed him previously. Satterwhite said he was doing fine — “Everything's good” — and praised the prison chaplain, Jim Brazzil, for helping him through the day. “He's wonderful,” Satterwhite said. “I'm at peace.”

Shortly before he was executed, he nodded to reporters who were to witness his death. After declining to make his final statement, he closed his eyes took a deep breath as the drugs began to take effect, sputtered twice and gasped twice. Satterwhite was the third of six condemned killers scheduled to die this month in Texas and the 29th this year in the nation's busiest death house. At least 11 other death row inmates have lethal injections set through the end of 2000, which could wind up a record year for executions in Texas, topping the 37 condemned prisoners put to death in 1997.

“It's kind of scary,” Satterwhite acknowledged in an interview earlier this month. “But if I have to go through with it, why fight it? You ain't got much choice.” In June, the U.S. Supreme Court refused to review Satterwhite's case, clearing the way for his execution. Satterwhite's punishment attracted none of the attention that drew the hundreds of protesters and media to Huntsville in June for the lethal injection of convicted killer Gary Graham. Graham's claims of innocence and an unfair trial spotlighted Texas as the nation's execution capital and support of the death penalty by Gov. George W. Bush, the Republican presidential nominee. Satterwhite had a spiritual adviser as his only personal witness. No one from the victim's family attended. Outside, half a dozen protesters stood quietly. Satterwhite already had been arrested eight times and had served a prison term for burglary and robbery by assault when he was charged with the March 12, 1979, killing of Davis, 54, after walking into the Lone Star Ice and Food Store in San Antonio under the guise of buying a pack of cigarettes and a soft drink — a 79-cent purchase. Davis was found seated on a toilet, a bullet through each temple.

“I wouldn't say I'm totally innocent,” Satterwhite said from death row. “I'm guilty of some things.” Asked about the shooting, he replied: “There's a possibility I could be the person that did it. ... I can't say I did or didn't.” Satterwhite and an accomplice, Sharon Bell, were pulled over for speeding a day after the Davis shooting and $600 robbery and officers found a gun in their car. Bell said it was hers and she was arrested for unlawfully carrying a weapon. Interviewed later by police, Bell fingered Satterwhite as the killer. Testifying at his trial, she told of seeing Satterwhite holding the gun against Davis' head as she was leaving the store and heard the victim plead for her life. Other witnesses identified the pair as being in the store just before the slaying. Authorities said they were responsible for a string of robberies in San Antonio, including another where a clerk was killed.

“He's a very cold-blooded psychopath, one of the worst I ever prosecuted, just because he had no regard for his victims,” said Bill Harris, the former Bexar County assistant district attorney who prosecuted Satterwhite. Bell, from San Antonio, received a 20-year prison term for aggravated robbery with a deadly weapon. She was released in 1986. “To me, it was total discrimination,” Satterwhite said, complaining Bell received favorable treatment because of her gender. “They never tried any deal with me. I'm the dude. I'm the male.” In 1988, the Supreme Court threw out Satterwhite's death sentence because he was not allowed to visit with a lawyer before taking a psychiatric test. At a second trial, a Bexar County jury convicted him and again decided he should be put to death.

www.eurunion.org

Representatives of the European Union to the United States have appealed by letter to Governor George W. Bush of Texas to show compassion by commuting the August 16 execution of Mr. John Satterwhite, in keeping with internationally accepted human rights norms and because the inmate is both mentally ill and mentally retarded. The EU is opposed to the death penalty in all cases. The EU considers that the abolition of the death penalty contributes to the enhancement of human dignity and the progressive development of human rights. For more information on the EU’s opposition to the death penalty, please consult the website of the European Commission Delegation at http://www.eurunion.org/legislat/DeathPenalty/deathpenhome.htm.

The appeal reads: We, as the representatives of the Presidency of the European Union, France, together with the next president, Sweden, and the European Commission wish to convey to you an urgent humanitarian appeal by the EU on behalf of Mr. John Satterwhite. We make this request in the framework of the European Union's policy of seeking a global moratorium on the use of the death penalty (which we have long renounced in Europe), as a step toward its worldwide abolition. The execution of Mr. Satterwhite, a U.S. citizen, is scheduled to be carried out by Texas State Authorities on August 16, 2000.

The case of Mr. Satterwhite seems to us to particularly merit your clemency, as Mr. Satterwhite is considered by many experts to be both mentally ill (borderline paranoid schizophrenic) and mentally retarded. Furthermore, according to Mr. Satterwhite's defense, there was mitigating evidence withheld by the state and not made known to the jury. We urge you to demonstrate compassion with regard to this case.

The EU considers that the execution of Mr. Satterwhite would be contrary to generally accepted human rights norms. In particular, it is our opinion that his execution would violate the United Nations Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) Resolution 1989/64 of 24 May 1989 on the implementation of the safeguards guaranteeing protection of the rights of those facing the death penalty. As you know, this resolution recommends that United Nations Member States eliminate the death penalty for persons suffering from mental retardation or extremely limited mental competence, whether at the stage of sentence or execution. It would also be contrary to Resolution 2000/65 adopted at the last session of the United Nations' Commission on Human Rights, which specifically urges all States that still maintain the death penalty "not to impose the death penalty on a person suffering from any form of mental disorder or to execute any such person."

The European Union respectfully urges you to commute Mr. Satterwhite's sentence to any other penalty compatible with international law