John Marek (murderer)
Encyclopedia
John Richard Marek was a death row
inmate at Florida State Prison
for the rape and murder of a woman in 1983. Marek was executed on August 19, 2009.
co-worker Jean Trach were returning home from a holiday trip, when their car broke down on Florida's Turnpike
in Broward County
. John Marek and his accomplice Raymond Dewayne Wigley stopped and convinced Adella Marie Simmons to ride with them to a service station
. They instead took her to a beach about 60 miles away, where she was repeatedly sexually assaulted, and then strangled with a bandana
and burned. Marek's accomplice Raymond Wigley was killed by fellow inmate John Richard Blackwelder while serving life imprisonment
in 2000. At trial, Blackwelder said he killed Wigley because he wanted to die. He was sentenced to death for killing Wigley and gave up all his appeals. Blackwelder was executed on April 26, 2005.
on May 13, 2009, inside the Florida State Prison
near Starke, Florida, after Governor Charlie Crist
signed a death warrant. However, at the last moment the execution did not go through. On July 16, the Florida Supreme Court
lifted the stay of execution
with Charlie Crist shortly afterwards setting the date of execution to August 19, 2009, at 6 p.m. inside Florida State Prison
. Marek's attorney filed a motion claiming there is a new witness who said Marek did not kill Adella Simmons. The motion was denied on August 17, 2009, by the judge in the case.
Marek was executed on Wednesday, August 19, 2009 at 6:20 p.m. (Eastern Daylight Time, EDT, -0400 UTC), at Florida State Prison
, Starke
, Bradford County, Florida
. The method of execution was lethal injection
. The execution itself took 13 minutes and Marek was declared dead at 6:33 p.m. Marek had declined sedatives and his final words were "Jesus, remember us sinners", followed by the Lord's Prayer
. Marek became the 68th death row inmate to be executed in Florida since the death sentence was reinstated there in 1979.
Death row
Death row signifies the place, often a section of a prison, that houses individuals awaiting execution. The term is also used figuratively to describe the state of awaiting execution , even in places where no special facility or separate unit for condemned inmates exists.After individuals are found...
inmate at Florida State Prison
Florida State Prison
Florida State Prison , formerly known as the Union Correctional Institution—East Unit, is a correctional institution located in unincorporated Bradford County, Florida. It is located on Florida State Road 16 right across the border from Union County. The institution opened in 1961, even though...
for the rape and murder of a woman in 1983. Marek was executed on August 19, 2009.
Kidnapping and murder
On June 16, 1983, Adella Marie Simmons, a 45-year-old mother of two, and her Barry UniversityBarry University
Barry University is a private, Catholic university, which was founded in 1940 in Miami Shores, Florida, a suburb north of Downtown Miami. It is part of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Miami....
co-worker Jean Trach were returning home from a holiday trip, when their car broke down on Florida's Turnpike
Florida's Turnpike
Florida's Turnpike , designated as the Ronald Reagan Turnpike, and originally known as the Sunshine State Parkway is a north–south toll road that runs through 11 counties in the Florida peninsula, from U.S...
in Broward County
Broward County, Florida
-2000 Census:As of the census of 2000, there were 1,623,018 people, 654,445 households, and 411,645 families residing in the county. The population density was 1,346 people per square mile . There were 741,043 housing units at an average density of 615 per square mile...
. John Marek and his accomplice Raymond Dewayne Wigley stopped and convinced Adella Marie Simmons to ride with them to a service station
Filling station
A filling station, also known as a fueling station, garage, gasbar , gas station , petrol bunk , petrol pump , petrol garage, petrol kiosk , petrol station "'servo"' in Australia or service station, is a facility which sells fuel and lubricants...
. They instead took her to a beach about 60 miles away, where she was repeatedly sexually assaulted, and then strangled with a bandana
Bandana
Bandana can refer to:*Another name for a kerchief*Bandana *Bandana *Bandana, Kentucky, a small town in the United States*Y Bandana, a Welsh alternative rock band.**Y Bandana , their self-titled debut album....
and burned. Marek's accomplice Raymond Wigley was killed by fellow inmate John Richard Blackwelder while serving life imprisonment
Life imprisonment
Life imprisonment is a sentence of imprisonment for a serious crime under which the convicted person is to remain in jail for the rest of his or her life...
in 2000. At trial, Blackwelder said he killed Wigley because he wanted to die. He was sentenced to death for killing Wigley and gave up all his appeals. Blackwelder was executed on April 26, 2005.
Execution
Marek was scheduled to be executed by lethal injectionCapital punishment in Florida
Capital punishment is legal in the U.S. state of Florida. Florida was the first state to reintroduce the death penalty after the Supreme Court of the United States struck down all statutes in the country in the 1972 Furman v. Georgia decision, and the first to perform a post-Furman involuntary...
on May 13, 2009, inside the Florida State Prison
Florida State Prison
Florida State Prison , formerly known as the Union Correctional Institution—East Unit, is a correctional institution located in unincorporated Bradford County, Florida. It is located on Florida State Road 16 right across the border from Union County. The institution opened in 1961, even though...
near Starke, Florida, after Governor Charlie Crist
Charlie Crist
Charles Joseph "Charlie" Crist, Jr. is an American politician who was the 44th Governor of Florida. Prior to his election as governor, Crist previously served as Florida State Senator, Education Commissioner, and Attorney General...
signed a death warrant. However, at the last moment the execution did not go through. On July 16, the Florida Supreme Court
Florida Supreme Court
The Supreme Court of the State of Florida is the highest court in the U.S. state of Florida. The Supreme Court consists of seven judges: the Chief Justice and six Justices who are appointed by the Governor to 6-year terms and remain in office if retained in a general election near the end of each...
lifted the stay of execution
Capital punishment in Florida
Capital punishment is legal in the U.S. state of Florida. Florida was the first state to reintroduce the death penalty after the Supreme Court of the United States struck down all statutes in the country in the 1972 Furman v. Georgia decision, and the first to perform a post-Furman involuntary...
with Charlie Crist shortly afterwards setting the date of execution to August 19, 2009, at 6 p.m. inside Florida State Prison
Florida State Prison
Florida State Prison , formerly known as the Union Correctional Institution—East Unit, is a correctional institution located in unincorporated Bradford County, Florida. It is located on Florida State Road 16 right across the border from Union County. The institution opened in 1961, even though...
. Marek's attorney filed a motion claiming there is a new witness who said Marek did not kill Adella Simmons. The motion was denied on August 17, 2009, by the judge in the case.
Marek was executed on Wednesday, August 19, 2009 at 6:20 p.m. (Eastern Daylight Time, EDT, -0400 UTC), at Florida State Prison
Florida State Prison
Florida State Prison , formerly known as the Union Correctional Institution—East Unit, is a correctional institution located in unincorporated Bradford County, Florida. It is located on Florida State Road 16 right across the border from Union County. The institution opened in 1961, even though...
, Starke
Starke, Florida
Starke is a city in Bradford County, Florida, United States. The population was 5,593 at the 2000 census. As of 2004, the population recorded by the U.S. Census Bureau is 5,769 ....
, Bradford County, Florida
Bradford County, Florida
Bradford County is a county located in the U.S. state of Florida. As of 2000, the population was 26,088. The 2005 U.S. Census Bureau estimate for the county was 28,118 . Its county seat is Starke, Florida. Bradford County is the home of the Florida State Prison as well as several other state...
. The method of execution was lethal injection
Lethal injection
Lethal injection is the practice of injecting a person with a fatal dose of drugs for the express purpose of causing the immediate death of the subject. The main application for this procedure is capital punishment, but the term may also be applied in a broad sense to euthanasia and suicide...
. The execution itself took 13 minutes and Marek was declared dead at 6:33 p.m. Marek had declined sedatives and his final words were "Jesus, remember us sinners", followed by the Lord's Prayer
Lord's Prayer
The Lord's Prayer is a central prayer in Christianity. In the New Testament of the Christian Bible, it appears in two forms: in the Gospel of Matthew as part of the discourse on ostentation in the Sermon on the Mount, and in the Gospel of Luke, which records Jesus being approached by "one of his...
. Marek became the 68th death row inmate to be executed in Florida since the death sentence was reinstated there in 1979.