Execution carried out for Geoffrey Todd West
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Special to the News
The execution of Alabama death row inmate Geoffrey Todd West was carried out by nitrogen hypoxia on September 25, at the William C. Holman Correctional Facility in Atmore.
He was pronounced deceased by a physician at 6:22 p.m.
On September 24, West had eight visitors and two phone calls. On September 25, he had eight visitors; no phone calls; refused his breakfast, lunch and dinner trays; had snacks throughout the day; and his final meal was chicken quesadillas.
West was sentenced to death for the 1997 capital murder of Margaret Parrish Berry in Etowah
County.
A brief press conference followed the execution at the Media Center with remarks from Alabama
Department of Corrections Commissioner John Q. Hamm.
The inmate’s remains will be released to the Escambia County coroner and transported to the Alabama Department of Forensic Sciences (Mobile Lab) for a postmortem examination.
Earlier that evening Gov. Kay Ivey informed Hamm that she would not exercise her clemency powers in this case and directed him to proceed with West’s lawfully imposed death sentence for the 1997 capital murder of Berry.
Ivey also issued the following comment, “Almost 30 years ago, Margaret Parrish Berry went to work at the convenience store, but she would never get to return home. Geoffrey West went in with the intent to rob and kill, and he cowardly shot Ms. Berry in the back of the head. Alabama law imposes death as punishment for the most egregious forms of murder, and there was no question of Mr. West’s guilt by the jury in this case or any court over the last three decades. As I expressed in a letter to one of Ms. Berry’s sons, it is my solemn duty as governor to carry out these laws. Tonight, the lawfully imposed death sentence has been carried out, justice has been served, and I pray for healing for all.”
Following last Thursday’s execution, Alabama Attorney General Steve Marshall issued the following statement:
“While working an honest job at a convenience store, Margaret Berry was executed in cold blood for $250. There is no doubt or dispute over the facts of this case, but thanks to legal gamesmanship, justice has been delayed for 26 years. The jury voted that the appropriate sentence was death.
“Margaret did not have to senselessly die. As a country, we must stand firmly in our beliefs between right and wrong, justice and forgiveness. Alabama is steadfast in our commitment to holding the guilty accountable because that is what honors the dignity of every victim. Justice is how we restore peace to the communities they leave behind.”
Attorney General Marshall cleared the execution to commence at 5:56 p.m., and West’s time of death was 6:22 p.m.
Legal Summary: State of Alabama v. Geoffrey Todd West
On March 27, 1997, Geoffrey Todd West and his girlfriend, Amy Pearce, drove to Harold’s Chevron, a convenience store where he had previously been employed. It is the same store location that West had expressed his intention to rob and to “leave no witnesses.”
Upon entering the Chevron store, West – armed with a .45 caliber handgun – held the attendant, Margaret Berry, at gunpoint. He took $250 from a cookie can where the store kept cash. Berry was then shot in the back of the head while lying face-down on the floor behind the counter.
West was convicted of capital murder on June 1, 1999. In the penalty phase, the jury recommended 10-2 that West be sentenced to death, and the trial court accepted that recommendation and imposed the death penalty.
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