Jimmy L. Glass
Encyclopedia
Jimmy L. Glass was an American
convicted murder
er, executed by the state of Louisiana
. He is probably best known not for his crime, but as petitioner in the U.S. Supreme Court
case Glass v. Louisiana
.
Glass' father worked in Arizona Chemical, where he was an instrument repairman. The company had a policy of hiring the children of employees as temporary summer laborers, including Glass.
Before committing a capital crime, Glass already had a criminal record. With fellow inmate Jimmy Wingo, Glass escaped from the Webster Parish, Louisiana Jail in December 1982 and, during their escape, they killed Newton Brown, 55, and his wife, Erlene Nealy Brown, 51 at their home in Dixie Inn
. Glass was soon arrested, Wingo later. Both were sentenced to death in the electric chair
.
Glass made a headlines in 1985 as a petitioner in a Supreme Court case. He argued that executions by electrocution
are violating the Eighth
and Fourteenth
Amendments to the United States Constitution
as "cruel and unusual punishment". But the Court, by majority 5-4, found that electrocution as an authorized method of executions is constitutional.
Glass was electrocuted on June 12, 1987 at the age of 25 and became the 78th person executed in the United States since 1977. Governor Edwin W. Edwards refused commutation of the sentence. Wingo was executed four days later, on June 16, 1987.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
convicted murder
Murder
Murder is the unlawful killing, with malice aforethought, of another human being, and generally this state of mind distinguishes murder from other forms of unlawful homicide...
er, executed by the state of Louisiana
Louisiana
Louisiana is a state located in the southern region of the United States of America. Its capital is Baton Rouge and largest city is New Orleans. Louisiana is the only state in the U.S. with political subdivisions termed parishes, which are local governments equivalent to counties...
. He is probably best known not for his crime, but as petitioner in the U.S. Supreme Court
Supreme Court of the United States
The Supreme Court of the United States is the highest court in the United States. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all state and federal courts, and original jurisdiction over a small range of cases...
case Glass v. Louisiana
Glass v. Louisiana
Glass v. Louisiana, , was a case decided by the United States Supreme Court in 1985.- Background :Jimmy L. Glass was sentenced to death by the state of Louisiana...
.
Glass' father worked in Arizona Chemical, where he was an instrument repairman. The company had a policy of hiring the children of employees as temporary summer laborers, including Glass.
Before committing a capital crime, Glass already had a criminal record. With fellow inmate Jimmy Wingo, Glass escaped from the Webster Parish, Louisiana Jail in December 1982 and, during their escape, they killed Newton Brown, 55, and his wife, Erlene Nealy Brown, 51 at their home in Dixie Inn
Dixie Inn, Louisiana
Dixie Inn is a village in Webster Parish, Louisiana, United States. The population was 352 at the 2000 census. It is located off Interstate 20 at the old Shreveport Road some twenty-six miles east of Shreveport. Minden, the seat of Webster Parish, is located some two miles to the east...
. Glass was soon arrested, Wingo later. Both were sentenced to death in the electric chair
Electric chair
Execution by electrocution, usually performed using an electric chair, is an execution method originating in the United States in which the condemned person is strapped to a specially built wooden chair and electrocuted through electrodes placed on the body...
.
Glass made a headlines in 1985 as a petitioner in a Supreme Court case. He argued that executions by electrocution
Electric chair
Execution by electrocution, usually performed using an electric chair, is an execution method originating in the United States in which the condemned person is strapped to a specially built wooden chair and electrocuted through electrodes placed on the body...
are violating the Eighth
Eighth Amendment to the United States Constitution
The Eighth Amendment to the United States Constitution is the part of the United States Bill of Rights which prohibits the federal government from imposing excessive bail, excessive fines or cruel and unusual punishments. The U.S. Supreme Court has ruled that this amendment's Cruel and Unusual...
and Fourteenth
Fourteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution
The Fourteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution was adopted on July 9, 1868, as one of the Reconstruction Amendments.Its Citizenship Clause provides a broad definition of citizenship that overruled the Dred Scott v...
Amendments to the United States Constitution
United States Constitution
The Constitution of the United States is the supreme law of the United States of America. It is the framework for the organization of the United States government and for the relationship of the federal government with the states, citizens, and all people within the United States.The first three...
as "cruel and unusual punishment". But the Court, by majority 5-4, found that electrocution as an authorized method of executions is constitutional.
Glass was electrocuted on June 12, 1987 at the age of 25 and became the 78th person executed in the United States since 1977. Governor Edwin W. Edwards refused commutation of the sentence. Wingo was executed four days later, on June 16, 1987.
See also
- Capital punishment in Louisiana
- Capital punishment in the United StatesCapital punishment in the United StatesCapital punishment in the United States, in practice, applies only for aggravated murder and more rarely for felony murder. Capital punishment was a penalty at common law, for many felonies, and was enforced in all of the American colonies prior to the Declaration of Independence...
Sources
- Copies of several newspaper articles . Retrieved on 2007-11-12.
- Executions in the U.S. from 1987-1990. Death Penalty Information Center. Retrieved on 2007-11-12.
- U.S. Executions Since 1976. The Clark County Prosecuting Attorney. Retrieved on 2007-11-12.