Why is it taking so long to carry out this mans death sentence?

[astro]

He’s been on death row since 1982, seems a bit long in the tooth procedurally at this point.
Clemency Hearing for Allen Denied

Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger has decided he will not hold a private clemency hearing for condemned inmate Clarence Ray Allen, who is scheduled for execution Jan. 17 for commissioning the murders of three people while he was behind bars.

Schwarzenegger did not offer a reason for his rejection, which came in a one-sentence letter from his legal affairs secretary to lawyers over the New Year’s holiday. If the execution goes forward, Allen, 75, will be the oldest person killed by the state of California in the modern history of the death penalty.

Allen was convicted in 1977 of arranging the 1974 murder of his son’s girlfriend, Mary Sue Kitts, who was a potential witness against him in a market burglary case.

While serving a life sentence at Folsom State Prison for the contract killing, Allen offered another inmate, Billy Ray Hamilton, $25,000 to kill eight people who had testified against him in the Kitts case.

After his release from prison, Hamilton in 1980 killed one of the witnesses, Bryon Schletewitz, son of the store owner, and two young market employees, Josephine Rocha and Douglas White.

Description of what he did - pdf file with pic

Clarence Allen

Victims: Bryon Schletewitz (male) Douglas Scott White (male) Josephine Linda Rocha (female)

Summary: In 1974, Clarence Ray Allen planned a burglary of Fran’s Market in Fresno, California and solicited the involvement of two men who worked for him at his security guard business. Allen also arranged the help of a young woman to get the keys to the store and its burglar alarm from Bryon Schletewitz, son of the market owner. Following the burglary and after stolen money orders were cashed, the young woman told Schletewitz it was Allen who had robbed the market. Schletewitz confronted Allen’s son, who denied it, and Allen himself also denied it. Allen said that something would have to be done to the young woman and he arranged her death.

Allen was arrested. He was convicted of burglary, first-degree murder and conspiracy and sent to prison to serve a life sentence on March 16, 1978. He was incarcerated at Folsom State Prison and knew Billie Ray Hamilton in prison. While in prison, Allen plotted to kill the people who had informed on him and gotten him prison time.

Three days after Hamilton was paroled, he was picked up by Allen’s son at the bus station where he also asked for weapons to carry out the crimes. On Sept. 4, 1980, Hamilton and his girlfriend, Connie Barbow, went to Fran’s Market and purchased some meat from Joe Rias. Rias went into the storeroom with Douglas White. Since it was after the market’s closing time, the front door was locked. Bryon Schletewitz and Josephine Rocha came into the storeroom followed by Hamilton who was holding a sawed-off shotgun. Barbow followed behind. Hamilton ordered them to lie down. They all sat down. He asked Schletewitz for the keys to the safe, ordered him out, and told Barbow to watch the others. She pulled out a handgun. They went to the safe. Schletewitz told Hamilton he would give him all the money.

Rias later testified that when Schletewitz and Hamilton went to the safe area, he heard shuffling and a bang. It was later learned that Hamilton shot Schletewitz at close range with the shotgun.

Hamilton went back to the room and asked Douglas White where the safes were kept; White did not know and Hamilton shot him at close range in the chest and stomach. Another shot was heard and it was later learned that a shotgun blast at close range killed Josephine Rocha. Hamilton attempted to kill Rias, but Rias covered his face with his left arm. The blast hit his arm, blowing off most of the tissue and shattering his elbow. Hamilton and Barbow checked on the other three victims to make sure they were dead.

Hamilton was later arrested as a suspect in a Modesto robbery and assault with a deadly weapon. Among his possessions was an address book with the name of Clarence Ray Allen. Because of the listing of Fran’s Market and the names of some of the victims, investigators believed there was a connection with the murders and the Fran’s Market burglary for which Allen had been convicted. The investigation of this matter led to the arrest of inmate Clarence Ray Allen. Allen was convicted of three counts of first-degree murder with special circumstances and was received onto California’s death row at San Quentin State Prison on December 2, 1982.

[indierock82]

I wonder what it said in the guys address book under the name Clarence Ray Allen. Address: Deathrow?