Derrick O'Brien

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Derrick Sean O'Brien (April 5, 1975 – July 11, 2006) was a convicted murderer who was executed by lethal injection by the state of Texas.

Sean O'Brien, then 18 years old, was one of six members of a Houston, Texas street gang who raped, tortured, and killed Elizabeth Peña, 16, and Jennifer Ertman, 14, on June 24, 1993. The two girls, who attended Waltrip High School, had been attacked as they took a shortcut home along railroad tracks and stumbled upon the gang, who were drinking beer after initiating a new gang member. Their decomposing bodies were found four days later. O'Brien later also admitted to murdering Patricia Lopez, 27, after attempting to rape her on January 4, 1993.

O'Brien was due to be executed on May 16, 2006, when his lawyers won a reprieve from the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals the day before the execution was scheduled. Days later, the same court lifted its earlier order and cleared the way for his execution.

On July 11, 2006 his lawyers again tried to get a stay of execution, with an appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court. This was rejected about a half an hour before he was scheduled to die. O'Brien's lawyers had unsuccessfully argued that no legal procedure existed to allow condemned Texas prisoners to raise challenges that drugs used in lethal injections cause "unnecessary, excessive, and excruciating pain".

When asked if he had a final statement, O'Brien raised his head from the death chamber gurney, looked straight at the relatives of the victims, and said:

“

I do. I am sorry. I have always been sorry. It is the worst mistake that I ever made in my whole life. Not because I am here, but because of what I did and I hurt a lot of people - you, and my family. I am sorry; I have always been sorry. I am sorry. You look after each other. I love you all. Be there for one another. Alright. But I am sorry; very sorry. I love you too. Alright.

”

The lethal injection was started at 6:12 p.m. and O'Brien was pronounced dead at 6:19 p.m.

[edit] Accomplices

• Peter Anthony Cantu^[1] was also sentenced to death. As of October 2007, he is still on Death Row^[2]
• Jose Ernesto Medellin^[3] was also sentenced to death. He has an execution date for August 5th, 2008.^[4]
• Venancio Medellin (Jose Medellin's brother) was 14 years old at the time of the crime and received a 40-year prison term.
• Efrain Perez^[5] was also sentenced to death. Because he was 17 years old at the time of the crime, his sentence was later commuted to life imprisonment and he was released from Death Row on June 24, 2005, exactly twelve years after the murders.^[6] As of October 2007, he is still in prison. He is eligible for parole in 2029.^[7]
• Raul Omar Villareal^[8] was also sentenced to death. Because he was 17 years old at the time of the crime, his sentence was later commuted to life imprisonment and he was released from Death Row on June 24, 2005, exactly twelve years after the murders.^[9] As of October 2007, he is still in prison. He is eligible for parole in 2029.^[10]

[edit] See also

• List of individuals executed in Texas
• Capital punishment in the United States

[edit] References

• Offender Information Detail - 999131. Texas Department of Criminal Justice. Retrieved on 2007-11-17.
• Last Statement. Texas Department of Criminal Justice. Retrieved on 2007-11-17.
• Sean Derrick O'Brien. The Clark County Prosecuting Attorney. Retrieved on 2007-11-17.
• Jennifer Ertman & Elizabeth Pena. MurderVictims.com. Retrieved on 2007-11-17.
• Derrick O'Brien writes on the Abolition movement. Canadian Coalition Against the Death Penalty. Retrieved on 2007-11-17.
• Turner, Allan and Rosanna Ruiz. O'Brien executed for rape-murders / Killer apologizes to the families of Peña and Ertman. Houston Chronicle (2006-07-12). Retrieved on 2007-11-17.