Donegal woman appeals against penpal's execution

A Donegal woman has made a last-minute appeal to have her prison penpal's death penalty overturned before his execution on Wednesday.

Ms Mary Stewart from Ardeskin in Donegal said new information had emerged which puts serious question marks over the conviction of Johnny Robinson (51) for the murder, kidnapping, armed robbery, and sexual battery of a woman in Florida 19 years ago.

In recent weeks his co-defendant Clinton Fields retracted key evidence concerning the rape and kidnapping of Ms Beverly St George, after her car broke down on the interstate highway in August 1986. He withdrew evidence that Robinson had raped the woman and said the sexual activity was consensual.

However, Robinson's latest appeal was rejected by Florida Supreme Court last Thursday. The court found that Robinson had not disputed the fact that he had killed the woman and found there was no newly discovered evidence to warrant the setting aside of the conviction.

It also rejected claims of racial bias. Robinson is of African- American origin while the victim was a white woman. He said he accidentally shot her once in a scuffle and then shot her a second time because he felt nobody would believe it was accidental.

Ms Stewart said she still hoped for a breakthrough. The prisoner is due to be executed by lethal injection at 6 p.m. Florida time on Wednesday. Pending any last-minute reprieve, Ms Stewart will hold a vigil with friends in her local church at 11 p.m. Irish time to mark the event. "We just have to pray and hope now."

She sent her last letter to Robinson on Thursday and expects to receive his final letter today or tomorrow.

Ms Stewart has been writing to Robinson for the past 13 years and said he had become a family friend. He was "kind and caring" and never complained about his imprisonment. Until recently, she did not know what he was in jail for, and only discovered the extent of the charges a few weeks ago. She opposes the death penalty in all cases and believes it is "horrendous" that the State executes "perfectly fit and healthy people".

Robinson was in good form in recent days and was relying on his Christian faith to support him. "He says that only God's will matters. Whatever man proposes, it will be in the hands of God. He has very strong faith. He has fought tooth and nail against it in the past. He says his lawyers are optimists but he is a realist."

She has now written to the Catholic bishop of St Augustine, asking him to use his influence with the Governor of Florida, Mr Jeb Bush, who is also a Catholic.