South Carolina carried out the execution of death row inmate Richard Moore for the 1999 murder of a convenience store clerk, despite calls for leniency from some of his former trial jurors, his trial judge initial, pastors, a former state prison warden and members of his family.

On Friday, November 1, Moore, 59, was executed by lethal injection and pronounced dead at 6:24 p.m. local time, according to Post and Mail.

Moore’s execution came 23 years after he was convicted of murdering employee James Mahoney. According to the Associated PressMoore entered the store unarmed, took a gun the victim was pointing at him and shot him in the chest when Mahoney shot him in the arm.

The fatal shooting took place at Nikki’s Speedy Mart in Spartanburg County. Moore himself argued that he did not intend to burglarize the premises before a confrontation with Mahoney, according to Post and Mail.

Republican Gov. Henry McMaster decided not to grant a pardon after Moore’s lawyers asked him to reduce his sentence to life in prison without the possibility of parole, although Moore’s legal team cited a criminal record blank and argued that it would be unjust to execute someone for an act that could be considered self-defense, according to the media outlet.

McMaster, according to the AP, did not give a reason when he refused to grant clemency, but said he spoke with the victim’s family and reviewed documents provided by Moore’s lawyers.

By Post and Mailciting the South Carolina Attorney General’s Office, the victim was white and Moore’s jury consisted of seven white women, four white men and one Hispanic man.

According to the AP, his lawyers argued that an execution would be unjust given that Moore was the last person on death row in South Carolina to be sentenced by a jury that did not include a black person and that 20 percent of South Carolina’s residents Spartanburg County were black. .

Three former jurors wrote letters to McMaster asking him to change the sentence to life without parole, as did a former state prison warden, the first judge in Moore’s trial, friends, pastors as well as Moore’s son and daughter, the AP reported.

“He’s a human being who made mistakes,” Lyndall Moore, Moore’s son, told the outlet. “And that particular mistake resulted in the death of another human being.” But his sentence is totally disproportionate to the crime itself.”

Among those present during the excitement were Moore’s attorney of 10 years, Lindsey Vann, members of the victim’s family and attorney Barry Barnette, who was part of the prosecution team.

Prison spokeswoman Chrysti Shain read his last words aloud at a news conference after his execution. “To the family of Mr. James Mahoney, I am deeply sorry for the pain and heartache I have caused you all,” he said. “To my children and granddaughters, I love you and I am so proud of you. Thank you for the joy you have brought to my life. To all my family and friends, new and old, thank you for your love and support.

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By Post and MailMoore is the second inmate executed in South Carolina since the state resumed the process in September, after 13 years. He was executed with a lethal dose of pentobarbital, a depressant drug, according to the media outlet.

Justice 360, which represented Moore, said South Carolina “needlessly took the life of Richard Moore – a loving father and grandfather, loyal friend and devoted follower of Christ.” They also claimed that the state “eliminated a shining example of reform and rehabilitation,” according to Post and Courier.

“This execution highlights the flaws in South Carolina’s death penalty system. Who gets executed or who is allowed to live out their lives in prison seems to be based solely on chance, race, or status. It is intolerable for our state to mete out the ultimate punishment in such a random manner,” Justice 360 ​​said, according to the AP.

The U.S. Supreme Court denied Moore’s request to reconsider the juror’s question in his case a day before his execution, according to Post and Courier.

Moore’s execution in South Carolina comes a month after the execution of Freddie Owens, which marked the first execution carried out in the state in 13 years.