A key witness has said that a man who faces execution for a murder in the US state of South Carolina did not commit the crime. But the state supreme court rejected the explosive testimony late Thursday, saying the execution should proceed as scheduled on Friday (Sep 20).
Lawyers of the 46-year-old Khalil Divine Black Sun Allah, earlier known as Freddie Owens, sought to halt the execution but it is going ahead in all likelihood.
Co-defendent Steven Golden wrote to the court saying that he lied at trial, and Owens was wrongfully convicted. He said Owens was not at the scene of the crime that took place in 1997, when he was 19.
South Carolina execution: What’s the case all about?
Owens was sentenced to death in the fatal shooting of a female store worker during an armed robbery in November 1997.
He maintained his innocence through all these years. While the CCTV footage showed two masked men engaging in the robbery, forensic evidence did not tie Owens to the shooting.
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During the course of the trial, Golden turned approver, agreeing to testify against Owens.
In his new affidavit to court, Golden said Owens was not at the scene of the crime. Golden said he did not reveal the real identity of the shooter as he feared the shooter’s associates would kill him. Golden, who was 18 at the time, also said he was high during the initial police investigation when he named Owens.
Golden said he came forward with the new testimony to clear his conscience.
Golden also alleged that prosecutors said he would be spared the death penalty if he testified against Owens, which he did.
The prosecutors dismissed Golden’s new testimony as not credible.
The state supreme court agreed with the attorney general, ruling the new evidence did not amount to “exceptional circumstances” warranting a reprieve for Owens, The Guardian reported.
(With inputs from agencies)
