A Texas man was executed on Tuesday evening, May 20, for brutally killing an elderly clerk by setting her on fire more than a decade ago. Matthew Lee Johnson, 49, received a lethal injection after 6 pm at the state penitentiary in Huntsville for the 2012 murder of 76-year-old Nancy Harris during a convenience store robbery. Johnson was accused of splashing the great-grandmother with lighter fluid and setting her ablaze at a store in Garland.
Who was Matthew Lee Johnson?
Johnson’s lawyers had previously argued in appeals that the death sentence was unconstitutional as he was improperly determined to be a future danger to society. Recent appeals argued that his execution date had been illegally scheduled.
According to prosecutors, Harris was working her Sunday morning shift when Johnson walked in and poured lighter fluid over her head before demanding money. Johnson later grabbed the money from the register, set Harris ablaze and calmly left the store. Johnson was arrested just about an hour after the attack.
Harris was badly burned, but was able to describe the suspect before dying days later. The attack was partially caught on camera.
Johnson previously expressed remorse for his crime, calling himself "the lowest scum of the earth." "I hurt an innocent woman. I took a human being's life. I was the cause of that. It was not my intention to – to kill her or to hurt her, but I did," he said.
Before his execution, Johnson bizarrely told Harris’ family that he wanted to see their slain loved one again. “As I look at each one of you, I can see her on that day,” he said. “I please ask for your forgiveness. I never meant to hurt her.”
{{/usCountry}}Before his execution, Johnson bizarrely told Harris’ family that he wanted to see their slain loved one again. “As I look at each one of you, I can see her on that day,” he said. “I please ask for your forgiveness. I never meant to hurt her.”
{{/usCountry}}“I pray that she’s the first person I see when I open my eyes and I spend eternity with,” he added in his chilling statement.
Johnson went on to ask his wife and daughters to forgive him. “I made wrong choices, I’ve made wrong decisions, and now I pay the consequences,” he said.