Latest news with #AndreThomas
Wales Online
4 days ago
- Wales Online
Death row killer gouges out both his own eyes and eats them in bid to avoid execution
Death row killer gouges out both his own eyes and eats them in bid to avoid execution Andre Thomas, 39, was sentenced to death in 2005 for the murders of his estranged wife and her two children. His execution was postponed after he gouged out his eyes The father removed the hearts of his kids (Image: Harold Democrat) A man sentenced to death for the brutal murder of his wife and children, in a horrific act of self-mutilation, gouged out both of his eyes and ate them in an attempt to avoid execution. Andre Thomas was handed the death sentence in 2005, but his execution was delayed after he removed his own eyeballs. He was discovered in his cell, covered in blood, prior to his court appearance in 2004, according to The San Diego Union-Tribune. In another shocking incident, Thomas gouged out his remaining eye and consumed it, leaving him completely blind. His legal team stated that he believed this act of self-harm would prevent the government from hearing his thoughts. The news comes as police hunt a killer on the run as family of 'horrific' Welsh murder victim say they are 'terrified'. The 39 year old is currently incarcerated in Texas for a triple murder to which he has confessed. He admitted to killing his estranged wife, Laura Christine Boren, their four year old son, and Boren's 13-month-old daughter. Thomas told authorities that he believed God had instructed him to commit the murders, claiming he thought his victims were demons. He also removed the hearts of both children, as reported by the Associated Press, reports the Mirror. Thomas gouged out his remaining eye and consumed it (Image: Texas Execution) Article continues below He was found guilty in 2005 and automatically received the death penalty. His execution is scheduled for 5 April 2023. Jason Clark, an agency spokesperson, confirmed: "Thomas said he pulled out his eye and subsequently ingested it." In March 2023, Judge Jim Fallon granted an order suspending Thomas' execution warrant, following a request from his legal team for extra time to assess his mental condition and determine whether he met the competency requirements for capital punishment. According to the Supreme Court, whilst the death penalty isn't prohibited for individuals with serious mental disorders, it mandates that a person must be deemed competent. Marie Levin, Thomas' solicitor, stated: "We are confident that when we present the evidence of Mr. Thomas's incompetence, the court will agree that executing him would violate the Constitution. Andre Thomas before and after each of his self-inflicted attacks (Image: AP) "Guiding this blind psychotic man to the gurney for execution offends our sense of humanity and serves no legitimate purpose." Levin described Thomas as "one of the most mentally ill prisoners in Texas history ... not competent to be executed, lacking a rational understanding of the state's reason for his execution." After consuming his first eyeball, Thomas received treatment at a medical facility before being moved to a prison psychiatric unit. His trial barrister, Bobbie Peterson-Cate, remarked that he would "finally be able to receive the mental health care that we had wanted and begged for from day 1." In March 2023, over 100 faith leaders and others issued a plea for mercy to halt his execution. However, J. Kerye Ashmore from the Grayson County District Attorney's Office, who prosecuted the case, stated they knew "nothing about the case" and had not read any reports or evaluations concerning his mental state. Article continues below Thomas continues to be on death row.
Irish Daily Mirror
5 days ago
- Irish Daily Mirror
Death row inmate eats in his own eyes after cutting out wife and kids' hearts
A man sentenced to death for the brutal murder of his wife and children, who then removed their hearts, has gouged out both of his eyes and eaten them in a desperate bid to avoid execution. Andre Thomas was handed the death sentence in 2005, but his execution date was delayed after he removed his own eyes. Thomas was discovered in his cell, covered in blood, prior to his court appearance in 2004, according to The San Diego Union-Tribune. In another incident, the killer gouged out his remaining eye and ate it, leaving him completely blind. His legal team stated he believed this act of self-mutilation would prevent the government from hearing his thoughts. The 39-year-old is currently incarcerated in Texas for a triple murder he committed and confessed to. He admitted to killing his estranged wife, Laura Christine Boren, their four-year-old son, and Boren's 13-month-old daughter. He informed the police God had instructed him to carry out the murders, believing the three victims were demons. Thomas also removed the hearts of both children, as reported by the Associated Press, reports the Mirror. Andre Thomas killed his wife and two kids (Image: Texas Execution) He was found guilty in 2005 and automatically received the death penalty. His execution is scheduled for 5 April 2023. An agency spokesperson, Jason Clark, said: "Thomas said he pulled out his eye and subsequently ingested it." In March 2023, Judge Jim Fallon made a decision to withdraw Thomas' execution warrant. This came after his legal team requested more time to assess his mental condition to determine if he met the competency criteria for capital punishment. The Supreme Court has stated that while capital punishment is not unlawful for individuals with severe mental health issues, the person must be deemed competent. Marie Levin, Thomas' solicitor, said in a statement: "We are confident that when we present the evidence of Mr. Thomas's incompetence, the court will agree that executing him would violate the Constitution. "Guiding this blind psychotic man to the gurney for execution offends our sense of humanity and serves no legitimate purpose." Andre Thomas before and after each of his self-inflicted attacks (Image: AP) Levin described Thomas as "one of the most mentally ill prisoners in Texas history ... not competent to be executed, lacking a rational understanding of the state's reason for his execution." After consuming his first eyeball, Thomas received treatment at a medical centre before being moved to a prison psychiatric ward. His trial solicitor, Bobbie Peterson-Cate, expressed relief that he would "finally be able to receive the mental health care that we had wanted and begged for from day 1." In March 2023, over 100 faith leaders among others issued an appeal for mercy to halt his execution, yet J. Kerye Ashmore, from the Grayson County District Attorney's Office who handled the prosecution, stated they know "nothing about the case" and had not examined any reports or assessments concerning his mental condition. Thomas continues to await execution on death row.
Daily Record
5 days ago
- Daily Record
Death row killer gouged out own eyes and ate them after killing wife and kids
Andre Thomas was sentenced to death in 2005 for the murder of his wife Laura Christine Boren, his four-year-old son and Boren's 13-month-old daughter in Texas A man sentenced to death for the horrific murder of his wife and children, in which he removed their hearts, gouged out his own eyes and ate them in a desperate bid to avoid execution. Andre Thomas was handed the death sentence in 2005, but his execution was delayed after he gruesomely removed his own eyes. He was discovered in his cell, drenched in blood, prior to his court appearance in 2004, according to The San Diego Union-Tribune. In another shocking incident, the man gouged out his remaining eye and swallowed it, leaving him completely blind. His legal team stated that he believed this act of self-mutilation would prevent the government from hearing his thoughts. The 39-year-old is currently incarcerated in Texas for a triple murder he confessed to committing. He admitted to killing his estranged wife, Laura Christine Boren, their four year old son, and Boren's 13-month-old daughter. He informed police he believed God had instructed him to carry out the murders, thinking the three victims were demons. Thomas also removed the hearts of both children, as reported by the Associated Press, reports the Mirror. He was found guilty in 2005 and automatically received the death penalty. His execution was scheduled for April 5, 2023. An agency spokesperson, Jason Clark, said: "Thomas said he pulled out his eye and subsequently ingested it." In March 2023, Judge Jim Fallon issued an order to withdraw the execution warrant for Thomas. This decision came after his legal team requested more time to assess his mental state and determine if he met the competency criteria for the death penalty. The Supreme Court has stated while the death penalty is not illegal for those with severe mental illnesses, the individual must be competent. Marie Levin, Thomas' lawyer, said in a statement: "We are confident that when we present the evidence of Mr. Thomas's incompetence, the court will agree that executing him would violate the Constitution. "Guiding this blind psychotic man to the gurney for execution offends our sense of humanity and serves no legitimate purpose." Levin described Thomas as "one of the most mentally ill prisoners in Texas history ... not competent to be executed, lacking a rational understanding of the state's reason for his execution." After consuming his first eyeball, Thomas received treatment at a medical centre before being moved to a prison psychiatric ward. His trial lawyer, Bobbie Peterson-Cate, expressed relief that Thomas would "finally be able to receive the mental health care that we had wanted and begged for from day 1." In March 2023, over 100 faith leaders and others issued a plea for mercy to halt his execution. However, J. Kerye Ashmore from the Grayson County District Attorney's Office, who prosecuted the case, claimed they knew "nothing about the case" and had not reviewed any reports or assessments concerning his mental condition. Thomas continues to be on death row.
Daily Mirror
5 days ago
- Daily Mirror
Death row prisoner gauges out both his own eyes to delay execution
WARNING: GRAPHIC CONTENT Andre Thomas was sentenced to death in 2005, but his execution date was postponed due to his mental state. A man on death row for killing his wife and children before removing both of their hearts, gouged both of his eyes out and ate them in a desperate attempt to avoid execution. Andre Thomas was sentenced to death in 2005, but his execution date was postponed after he pulled out his own eyeballs. Thomas was found in his cell covered in blood before his day in court in 2004, reports The San Diego Union-Tribune. The man gouged out his other eye and ingested his second eye in another incident, which left him fully blind. His attorneys said he thought the act of mutilation would stop the government hearing his thoughts. To this day the 39-year-old, is imprisoned in Texas for a triple murder he committed and has confessed to. He admitted to murdering his estranged wife, Laura Christine Boren, his four-year-old son and Boren's 13-month-old daughter. He told police God had told him to commit the murders and he'd believed the three of them were demons. Thomas also removed the hearts of both children, Associated Press reported. He was found guilty in 2005 and was automatically given the death penalty. He was to be executed on April 5, 2023. An agency spokesperson, Jason Clark, said: "Thomas said he pulled out his eye and subsequently ingested it." In March 2023, Judge Jim Fallon issued an order withdrawing Thomas' warrant of execution, which came after his lawyers asked for additional time to review his mental state to see if he passed the competency threshold for the death penalty. According to the Supreme Court, while the death penalty is not illegal for those with severe mental illnesses, it rules a person must be competent. Marie Levin, Thomas' attorney, wrote in a statement: "We are confident that when we present the evidence of Mr. Thomas's incompetence, the court will agree that executing him would violate the Constitution. "Guiding this blind psychotic man to the gurney for execution offends our sense of humanity and serves no legitimate purpose." Levin said Thomas was 'one of the most mentally ill prisoners in Texas history … not competent to be executed, lacking a rational understanding of the state's reason for his execution.' Following the ingestion of his first eyeball, Thomas was treated at a medical centre before being transferred to a prison psychiatric ward. His trial attorney, Bobbie Peterson-Cate, said here he would 'finally be able to receive the mental health care that we had wanted and begged for from day 1.' In March 2023, a call for clemency was issued by more than 100 faith leaders amongst others to stop his execution, however, J. Kerye Ashmore, with the Grayson County District Attorney's Office who prosecuted the case, said they know 'nothing about the case' and had not read any reports or evaluations regarding his mental state. Thomas remains on death row.
