South Carolina Executes Inmate Richard Moore Despite Pleas from Jurors, Judge and Others to Spare His Life

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

On Friday, Nov. 1, Moore, 59, was executed by lethal injection and declared dead at 6:24 p.m. local time, according to The Post and Courier.

Moore’s execution took place 23 years after he was convicted of killing clerk James Mahoney. Per the Associated Press, Moore entered the store unarmed, took a gun that the victim pointed at him and fatally 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 didn’t intend to rob the location before a confrontation with Mahoney, per The Post and Courier.

Republican Gov. Henry McMaster decided to not grant clemency after Moore’s lawyers asked him to reduce his sentence to life in prison without parole, despite Moore’s legal team citing a clean prison record and arguing it would be unjust to execute someone over an act that could be considered self-defense, per the 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 materials Moore’s lawyers had provided.

Per The Post and Courier, which cited the South Carolina Attorney General’s Office, the victim was white and Moore’s jury was made up 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 Moore was the last person on South Carolina’s death row to be sentenced by a jury that didn’t include a Black person, and that 20% of Spartanburg County residents 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 director, Moore’s original trial judge, friends, pastors and Moore’s son and daughter, the AP reported.

“He’s a human being who made mistakes,” Moore’s son Lyndall Moore told the outlet. “And this particular mistake led to the death of another human being. But his sentence is completely disproportionate to the actual crime.”

Among those present for the excitation were Moore’s lawyer of 10 years, Lindsey Vann, members of the victim’s family and Solicitor Barry Barnette, who was on the prosecution team.

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

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

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

“This execution underscores the flaws in South Carolina’s death penalty system. Who is executed versus who is allowed to live out their lives in prison appears to be based on no more than chance, race, or status. It is intolerable that our state metes out the ultimate punishment in such a haphazard way,” Justice 360 said, per the AP.

The U.S. Supreme Court declined Moore’s petition to review the juror issue in his case a day before he was executed, according to The Post and Courier.

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