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Show OPINION TheSalt | ake’ Inbune AAS Sunday, September 4, 2003 Capital punishment: Gary Gilmore anda lessonlearned | knew Benny Bushnell; not well, but I knew him. His nameis a footnote nowandhis killeris famous:, Benny was murdered by Gary Gilmore, and Gilmore was executed for the crimein 1977. This execution ended a 10-year moratorium on executions in the United States. Books havesince been written about Gilmore that explore that night Bennywas dead and Gilmore wasguilty. Ina 4th District courtroom, he glared menacingly at the jurors as they announced their guilty verdict. He was sentenced to die and, in a showof defiance, chose the firing squad over lethal injection. Soon after, Gilmore grabbed worldwide notoriety by denying all legal appeals that would have delayed his execution for many years. So his date with the firing squad came quickly. In January, less than six months after his crimes, the U.S. Supreme Court lifted its stay on his persona, but I didn’t want to knowanything about him. Knowing him, | might find a reasonto pity and forgivé’him. To me, Gilmore was a lifeless, meankiller who waswithout remorse for his crimes. He deserved to die and Utah justice demandedit. That wasall I wanted to know. Bennywasa nice kid with a pregnant wife, a child and a future full of Their weapons wouldbe30-30 Winchester Model94 carbines, a rifle | had used for hunting deer. Fourof the rifles would be chamberedwith live rounds, the fifth with a blank. On the morning ofthe execution, Gilmore was seated andtied to the chair and a physicianaffixed a white patch to his shirt overhis heart. At the appointed hour, aim wastaken, the order was given to fire, shots rang out and Gilmoredied. Justice satisfied, | thought. But what followed for me was profound and most curious The moment Gilmore’s death was announced, I felt physically ill. | was nauseous and mylegs went weak. | tried to dismiss myfeelings but I could not shake them. | soon recognized, without any doubt, that myrolein the execution was troubling me, but why? The physical symptoms passed within a few hours, but my troubled feelings remained for weeks asI struggled to put them into somecontext I could understand. I wasstartled to realizethat I, UTAH VOICES LARRY N. hope. He was a student at Brigham Young University and was working his way through school as a motel managerin Provo. On that August night in 1976, Gilmore entered the motel office, ordered Bennyto lie on thefloor and then shot himinthe back ofthe headbefore walking out with a fewdollars fromthe till. Benny’s pregnant wife wasin the next room the job providedliving quarters — heard the shot, investigated and found her husband dead on the floor. She has never recovered from the shock of executions. Gilmore was to die for JENSEN his crimes, the first of many hun- dreds to follow. I followed the case with interest. The newspapers werefull of reports every day for personally, could not have been the executioner; | monthsleading up to the execution, detailing how it would be carried out. It would take place in a storage shedat the prison that was partially filled with sandbagsto receive the spent bullets. Gilmore would be seated on an ordinary wooden chair. A could not have pulleda trigger in that shed onthat day. I was experiencing an epiphany of somesort, something beyond knowledge and truth, something higher. I had participatedin the executionin averyreal sense, ifonly virtually. Relief cameafter admitting the hard truth that I had executed temporarywall severalfeet in front of him would havefive holes for the riflemen to shoot through. Gilmorein thought. I didnot feel guilt or shame for myvirtual act, but a sublime and profound sad ness, as if | had disappointed someoneimportant to me. Throughthe yearssince, I have tried to verbally conveythis experienceto others but wordsfail the experience. What happened to me was profound beyond words. Thebest I can dois to admit I executed Gilmorethat day on a plane that transcends ordinary existence, a plane beyond competing ideas | had violated a universal moral law, “Thou shall not kill,” evenif only in the realmofthought. I cannot denythis and I shall never forget it. Capital punishment is wrong. I knowthat now, but not froma legalistic point of view. It’s more personal. Executions are carried out in the nameofthe people. That a surrogatestands willing in myplace to do the killing is abhorrent to me. If [ cannot stand in the firing squad and do the deed, then no one should The executioner’s act will always be mine, and| havekilled before and knowthe profound sadness ofit.As to Gilmore, I don’t hate himbut loathe him still. His mindless, senseless killing of Bennywill always be beyond reason. It is Gilmore's evil and unforgiven legacy. LarryN. Jensenis a retired school district superintendeni living in Farmington, where he writes, gardensand chases grandkids. Could GOP squabble be brewing in 3rd Congressional District? Cannon will receive an intraparty While Republicans focus on the growing andimpressive field of candidates vying for the GOP gubernatorial nomination next spring, they may be overlooking a brewing intraparty fight that could resurrect memories of 1990. Andthose are not fond memories for Republicans. The 1990 election in challenge at the 2004 GOP Convention. That’s not new. Heusuallygetsa feeble fight from one or morecandidates from the fringe right who denouncehis compassionfor illegal immigrants orflings some type of New World Ordernonsense at him. But this time the opponent is no winger. Greg Hawkins, a Salt Utah's 3rd Congressional Lake City attorney, estabDistrict produced the diglished himself as a viable gest political upset in the Republican politician nation. Unknown Demowhen he came within a crat Bill Orton defeated handful of delegate votes Republican Karl Snowin of forcing Utah’s senior what was considered then politician, five-term Sen. the most Republican con Orrin Hatch, into a pri gressional district in the mary election in 2000. United States. Pau ROLLY Hawkins used a combi Now, incumbent Re nation platformof conserpublican Chris Cannonis vatism on someissues and a moderate gearing up for what has appeared to bea sensibility on others to shock convenrelatively comfortable ride to a fifth tion watchers andthrowascareinto the term next year in that same 3rd Con previously untouchableHatch. gressional District, still overwhelm He now regrets accepting an offer ingly Republican. trom Glen Davis, who was ableto force But there maybe a bump intheroad, Gov. Mike Leavitt into a primaryinthat maybeeven one ofthe blockades we be same convention, to be Davis’ lieutencame so familiar with during 1-15 ant governor running mate in the reconstruction. ROLLY REPORT primary. Leavitt crushed Davis inthat arena. “There was a perception we were a right-wing alternative to Leavitt,” Hawkinssays.“I’m not right wing. Glen isn't evenin that right-wing mold.” So Hawkinssat out the 2002 election while working to recover whatever damageto his image he might havesuffered in the primaryelection debacle. Now, heis reinvigorated and readyto take on Cannon. Hawkins says that with redistricting, just about half the 3rd District is made up of southwestern Salt Lake County, his briar patch. Hawkinslives in Riverton and did well among delegates from that area in his duel with Hatch. He also notes that redistricting in Utah County, Cannon's stronghold, took the northern part of the countyout of the 3rd District and movedit to the 2nd as Republican map-changers hoped to unseat Democratic Congressman Jim Matheson. But the parts of Utah County where Hawkins fared the best were untouched. “With the current (district makeup), I’m sure I canget out of the convention,” says Hawkins. He also dismisses fears that his in traparty tussle with Cannoncouldleave the party divided andforfeit the seat to the Democrats, which is exactly what happenedin 1990. “This is no 1990,” Hawkinssays. “The partyis too strong andthedistrict still is 64 percent Republican, even after redistricting.” But waiting in the wings is Democrat Ed Mayne, a respected state senator, even among that body’s Republican majority, and the longtimepresident ofthe AFL-CIO of Utah. Mayne, a West Valley City resident, also claims southwestern Salt Lake County as his hometurf. Orton backed into Congress when Snow, a popular state senator, engaged in a nasty primaryfight with conservative Republican John Harmer. After both Republicans were bloodied by ac cusations each campaign threwat the other, Snow emerged wounded. A dis gusted Republican-dominated elector ate choseto reject both of themandvote for Orton. Back Room Smoke Utah House Speakerand Republican gubernatorial hopeful Marty Stephens will enhance his $167,000 campaign bank account this week when he throws his third annual Constitutional Caucus Tuesdayat the Grand America Hotel at $175 per person. Stephens supporters expect a $200,000 haul at the banquet, moving him close to the $400,000 mark going into the GOP convention next spring The new minority affairs subcommitteeof the Legislature’s Joint Interim Judiciary Committee will hold its first public hearing Sept. 25 between 5-8 p.m., tentatively at West High School. Chairman James Evans wasin strumental in creating the committee, which will explore whetherthe Legisla ture should assume some kind of over sight over minority affairs policy Vickie McCall, who ranfor the Republi can nomination for the Ist Congressional District two years ago, chose not to run for re-election for pres ident of the GOP’s Elephant Club, fuel ing speculation she might be consider ing a lieutenant governor offer from one of the party's gubernatorial candidates COMPETENCY-MEASURED EDUCATION Opportunity isn’t knocking. It’s smashing down the door. 3.74% variable rates as low as Whatthe future can be for Utah’s for qualifying Bank One Home Equity Line~ public schools... 5.99% fixed rates as low as The Utah State Board of Education is proposing a for qualifying Bank One Home Equity Loan competency-measured systemfor Utah's K-12 public schools. 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