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Man executed for murdering his parents

SMYRNA, (Delaware): A man who wanted to die rather than spend the rest of his life in jail for killing his adoptive parents was executed by lethal injection early on Friday, prison officials said.

"Jerry, Jerry, my soul is free," were the last words of James Clark Jr, spoken to his lawyer Jerome Capone, who witnessed the execution at the Delaware Correctional Centre.

About 75 opponents of the death penalty, including members of the human rights group Amnesty International, held a vigil outside the prison to protest against Clark's execution.

But Clark, 39, had refused to appeal against his death sentence and repeatedly asked to die as soon as possible, saying it was the only way to free himself from jail.

"The story here is not the fact that James Clark was executed but why he chose to be executed instead of fighting for his life," Capone told reporters. "Execution was the only way he could escape prison."

Clark was convicted of killing his adoptive parents two years ago, one month after completing a 21-year sentence for assaulting a child and almost strangling her.

He pleaded guilty rather than stand trial for the shooting deaths of Elizabeth Clark, 71, and James Clark Sr, 72, and was sentenced to die. He never filed an appeal.-Reuter