"Every day I wake up, he's the first person I think of...," said death row inmate Lance A. Chandler of the grocery store clerk he murdered five years ago.
No doubt, William Howard "Billy" Dix's widow does too.
Less than a week before his scheduled execution for the murder that occurred during a convenience store robbery, the condemned man wants her and Dix's father to know he is sorry.
What would he say to them?
"I would tell them no matter what I say, nothing can make up for what I've done. I'm sorry. I know that's not enough but that's all I can say," said the 25-year old Halifax County man.
"I know people don't believe it but it was an accident. When I pulled the gun, I didn't mean to shoot him, I was trying to scare him," said Chandler to reporters during an exclusive telephone interview with The Gazette-Virginian.
He's ready to pay the price.
"I'm just ready to get it over with. I'd rather die Thursday than live my life without the possibility of parole."
"Without parole, you ain't got no hope at all..." Chandler said.
As reconciled as he says he is to his own execution, Chandler remains a firm opponent of capital punishment "because it's no kind of justice."
No justice if you happen to be a black man.
"If I was a white dude, and killed another white or another black in the same situation, I'd be four times less likely if I was a white guy to get the death penalty," said Chandler who has spent some of the past five years in prison researching capital punishment cases.
Still, Chandler maintains he's not racially prejudiced.
"Somebody said I hated white people. I got a white brother-in-law..I used to have white friends.
The "somebody" Chandler may have been referring to was Geraldine Fernandez, one of three other codefendants convicted for their respective roles in the February 1993 crime.
"I think Geraldine said something...but I don't have any problem with white people and never have." "I couldn't get that across because the jury took everything Geraldine said for law without knowing she had gave three statements and lied in each and every one."
Chandler was 20-years old when he committed his most serious crime but his troubles with the law began when he was just 14. It was on Halloween night at Hardee's in downtown South Boston when he was told to remove his mask but refused.
"It was silly," he recalled.
"They told me to take my shades off...you know, them shades with the mustache and nose."
And why did he refuse?
"I wasn't bothering nobody and I was just having fun," Chandler explained.
Chandler dropped out of school in ninth grade.
"I guess the main reason was just I didn't feel like I was going anywhere, I didn't feel like I had a future in school."
And then there was the authority problem.
"I have a problem with authority figures because I think most authority figures are corrupt themselves and they try to impose their will on you."
"It seemed like to me certain teachers and certain principals didn't have a right to just because they didn't like you..." Chandler reasoned. "They didn't like you because of the way you walked, or looked, or acted without even knowing you."
"You already had strikes against you and no matter what you do, they still had that same feeling about you."
It was not a wholesale dislike for teachers, education, and authority however.
"I had a plan. When I got to high school, I joined the JROTC and I was going to be on the track team." said Chandler who may have been the fastest miler on his team.
"Like Tisha (Waller)", a cousin who was a track star locally and then at the University of North Carolina before competing in the Olympics and World Games.
"That was like exactly where I wanted to go," Chandler said with excitement. "I wanted to go on a track scholarship but I just didn't have the grades."
Did his love for sports and dreams of following in his cousin's footsteps offset the problems Chandler was having with authority figures and brushes with the law?
"It didn't. I wish it had."
And there was substance abuse.
"I liked to drink. I did that every day," Chandler said adding, "and I'd smoke a little weed." But Chandler denied doing hard drugs.
"It terrified me...I know it's silly but I'm terrified of needles."
On the night Chandler shot Dix, he admitted to having used alcohol, marijuana and cocaine. "If I hadn't been on them I probably would have never went that night.
"Somebody got hurt because my mind was clouded."
One of eight children, Chandler speaks little of his biological father. His mother died, ironically, in 1993 while he and two of his brothers were behind bars.
"She was the most dedicated and loving person that you could ever meet. We didn't have much but my mother used to go out of her way to make sure that not only we had, but if somebody in the neighborhood needed something and my mother had it, she would give it to them," said Chandler affectionately.
"I let her down big time! It's the hardest part about this whole thing, other than accepting and facing what I done and knowing that I did it."
Still, his mother remained his most steadfast supporter. "The first thing she did was brought me a Bible and she told me that I needed to start reading it." That was when Chandler was in Halifax County Jail.
"She started getting sick. When she couldn't walk any more from the cancer, and I wanted to see her, she had somebody bring her over to Halifax in the parking lot just so I could see her."
Chandler took his mother's advice and while in prison at Mecklenburg Correctional Center in Boydton, confessed belief "in my Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ."
He was lead to that confession by missionaries Bob and Sarah West who performed his baptism in prison.
"I think what religion helped me do was take hold of all of it, accept it, and let it go because I can't do nothing about it."
"Whatever happens I'm not going to be the decision maker. I put it in God's hands."
Is he afraid to die?
"No, definitely not! I'm telling you I don't want to sound morbid, but I welcome it. I've been locked up five years.
As Thursday's execution day looms, it's been a couple of months since Chandler has had a visitor. However he talks by phone to family members and most often, his sister-in-law.
Last week's interview with Gazette-Virginian lasted just over an hour. Asked what message he would send to the community, Chandler had this reply:
"First, I'd thank everybody who has stuck by me and helped my family through this. Secondly, I'd say if they think capital punishment is justice they should look at the facts. It has nothing to do with justice.
(Editor's Note: Staff writers Joe Chandler, Beth Robertson and Doug Loftis contributed to this article)
By BILL BASKERVILL
Associated Press Writer
RICHMOND, Va. (AP) - Dealt another setback in his attempt to regulate teen smoking, President Clinton once again appealed to Congress to ''act responsibly'' and enact bipartisan tobacco legislation.
A federal appeals court ruled Friday that the Food and Drug Administration has no authority to regulate tobacco, and struck down FDA rules that make it harder for minors to buy cigarettes.
''We are of the opinion that Congress did not intend to delegate jurisdiction over tobacco products to the FDA,'' a three-judge panel of the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals said in a 2-1 ruling.
The court reversed an April 1997 ruling by U.S. District Judge William Osteen, who said the FDA could regulate nicotine as a drug and crack down on minors' access to cigarettes.
The FDA regulations, announced in 1996, require stores to demand photo IDs from young people and restrict cigarette vending machines to bars and other places off-limits to minors. The tobacco industry had challenged the FDA's authority to make such regulations.
The Clinton administration said it will appeal by asking for a rehearing in front of the full appeals court. As a result, the regulations remain in effect in the meantime. The ruling does not affect laws of states and localities prohibiting the sale of tobacco to anyone under 18.
''I am firmly committed to the FDA's rule and its role in protecting our children from tobacco,'' President Clinton said in a statement. ''If the leadership in Congress would act responsibly, it would enact bipartisan comprehensive tobacco legislation to confirm the FDA's authority and take this matter out of the courtroom.''
The ruling came two months after Congress defeated anti-tobacco legislation that would raise cigarette taxes, restrict the industry's ability to advertise and force it to pay $516 billion, some of which would go toward a nationwide campaign to discourage teen smoking.
The bill introduced by Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., also would have raised cigarette taxes by $1.10 a pack and severely restricted the industry's ability to advertise.
The money would help states defer expenses of treating smoking-related diseases, finance disease research and pay for a nationwide campaign to discourage teen smoking.
''The appeals court's decision makes it even more imperative that Congress pass comprehensive legislation to address the problem of youth tobacco use and addiction,'' McCain said in a statement Friday.
Tobacco industry spokesman Scott Williams said that the industry is pleased with the ruling but also ''remains firmly committed to taking meaningful steps to reduce underage tobacco use.''
In the landmark ruling from the heart of tobacco country, Greensboro, N.C., Osteen had rejected the industry's biggest argument: that Congress never intended for the FDA to regulate tobacco, and that the government has not proved tobacco is a drug.
But Osteen threw out regulations restricting outdoor advertising and banning brand-name sponsorship of sporting events and cigarette promotional items such as T-shirts and hats.
Three people were arrested Thursday on various felony charges involving the operation of an alleged large cocaine and marijuana ring based in Nathalie.
"This was a large ring and we believe they had revenues at street level prices of about $30,000 to $40,000 every month," said Sgt. Richard Pulliam of the Tri-County Regional Drug Task Force.
Joshua Lee Napier, 24, of Nathalie - the alleged ringleader - was arrested after a traffic stop of a 1986 Toyota pickup truck on U.S. 501, near the intersection of Rt. 615, according to Sgt. Pulliam.
Napier was charged with three felony counts of distribution of cocaine, according to the investigation.
Also arrested was Willard Crawford Hudson, 38, of Halifax who was charged with felony counts of abduction, use of a firearm while in the commission of a felony, and possession of a firearm after having previously been convicted of a felony, police said.
The third subject was James Kevin Quarles, 24, of Nathalie. He was charged with felony counts of possession of cocaine with intent to distribute, possession of marijuana with intent to distribute, and a misdemeanor count of carrying a concealed weapon, according to the investigation.
Additional charges and arrests will take place stemming from the year-long undercover investigation of the alleged ring, Sgt. Pulliam pointed out.
During a search of Quarles' truck after the traffic stop, task force agents found $10,000 in cash; a quarter kilogram of powdered and crack cocaine; four ounces of marijuana; and a 9mm handgun, police said.
In a subsequent search of two residences and a motel room, two sets of digital scales and eight additional weapons were discovered, including two Chinese-made SKS assault rifles. One of the two 7.62mm Chinese assault rifles was equipped with a banana clip.
Police also found video surveillance equipment at Napier's rented home which allowed people at the home to monitor the entrance to the residence, Sgt. Pulliam said.
Seven vehicles allegedly used in the operation of the ring were confiscated and will be the subject of a civil forfeiture hearing that will be scheduled if the subjects are convicted.
Napier's residence will not be the subject of forfeiture proceedings since he is renting the home, Sgt. Pulliam pointed out.
The criminal proceedings against the subjects will be prosecuted by Halifax County Commonwealth's Attorney John Greenbacker Jr., while the civil forfeiture proceedings will be conducted by Special Prosecutor George Buzzy.
The subjects will be forego the the process of preliminary hearings in the Halifax County General District Court, since they were indicted by a special grand jury of the circuit court.
All three are currently being held in the Blue Ridge Jail-Halifax pending their appearance in the Halifax County Circuit Court. Napier is being held under a $50,000 bond; Quarles is being held under a $32,500 bond; and Hudson is being held without bond.
In a separate case investigated by the task force, Steven James "Poncho" Morse, 44, of Clover was arrested Friday on felony counts of possession of cocaine and marijuana, police said.
The alleged incidents occurred on April 9. Morse, a rodeo clown who is recovering from injuries, was released on bond pending his trial in the Halifax County Circuit Court.
He was arrested by Cpl. Francis Barnwell of the the task force.
An arrest is imminent in the August 7 murder case of an Alton woman, according to Major Ray Link of the Halifax County Sheriff's Department.
Declining to release the alleged murderer's name until the actual arrest is made, Major Link did state that the male subject is currently being held in the Person County Jail in Roxboro, N.C.
The subject is believed to have caused the shotgun slaying of Rhonda Bowes Stone, 30, of Mt. Carmel Road. The alleged incident occurred between 8 p.m. and 10:30 p.m. that night, police said.
"We go before a judge in North Carolina on Monday, so we hope to have him back in Halifax either on Monday or Tuesday," Major Link said. An extradition hearing is required before he can be returned to Virginia, he explained.
Major Link and Investigator C.A. Bates went to Person County Sunday afternoon to gather additional evidence and statements concerning the case.
In other cases:
· William Louis Cash, 38, of Halifax was arrested Friday on felony counts of abduction and forcible sodomy of a woman which occurred on August 6, police said.
He was also charged with misdemeanor counts of assault and battery of the woman and destruction of personal property which belonged to the woman, according to the investigation.
Cash is currently being held in the Blue Ridge Jail-Halifax pending his trial in the Halifax County Juvenile and Domestic Relations Court on August 12. He was arrested by Deputy D.W. Martin.
· Gregory Lee Jones, 22, of Nathalie was arrested Sunday on a misdemeanor count of assault and battery of Raven Nicole Epps, police said. The alleged incident occurred Saturday.
Jones was released on bond pending his trial in the Halifax County Juvenile and Domestic Relations Court on August 25. He was arrested by Deputy C.S. Yeatts.
· Kevin Carter Styles, 33, of Alton was arrested Saturday on a misdemeanor count of assault and battery of Mary Lynn Styles, police said. The alleged incident occurred on Saturday.
Styles was released on bond pending his trial in the Halifax County Juvenile and Domestic Relations Court on August 25. He was arrested by Deputy Q.W. Clark.
· Stacey Glen Holt, 29, of Alton was arrested Saturday on misdemeanor counts of assault and battery of Ramona Teaton and destruction of personal property, police said. The alleged incidents occurred on Saturday.
Holt was released on bond pending his trial in the Halifax County Juvenile and Domestic Relations Court on October 19. He was arrested by Cpl. S.T. Moser and Deputy Yeatts.
By JACKIE HALLIFAX
Associated Press Writer
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (AP) - A tobacco company asked a trial judge Friday to throw out a landmark $1 million award to the family of a dead smoker, arguing the judge had no authority to enter judgment before a dispute over the location of the trial was resolved.
The judgment against Brown & Williamson Tobacco Corp. came in June, but the 1st District Court of Appeal ruled on the venue question Thursday - unaware that the trial had already taken place.
The three-judge appeals panel agreed with Brown & Williamson that the trial should be held in south Florida, Roland Maddox lived, and not some 300 miles north in Jacksonville where the family's lawyer has his office.
The cigarette maker had filed a motion before trial seeking to change the venue. Under the rules of court procedure in Florida, a lawsuit can go to trial when such an issue is on appeal. A jury can even issue its verdict, but the trial judge does not have the authority to enter a final judgment based on the verdict if the appeal is still pending.
The jury returned the verdict June 10 after a monthlong trial and Circuit Judge Charles Mitchell entered the final judgment June 22.
Bob Parrish, a Jacksonville attorney for the tobacco company, said he hoped to have a decision on the motion to toss out the judgment within a couple of weeks.
Norwood ''Woody'' Wilner, the Jacksonville lawyer who represented Maddox's family, didn't return a phone call Friday. He said Thursday that the appellate court ruling simply means further proceedings would take place in Palm Beach County.
''Our position is that it is sent to West Palm Beach with the verdict intact,'' he said. ''Time will tell.''
Maddox had smoked about two packs of Lucky Strikes a day before quitting in 1995 after almost 50 years. He was diagnosed with lung cancer in the fall of 1996 and died a year later at age 67.
His family sued Brown & Williamson, claiming the Louisville, Ky.-based company was negligent, made a defective product and conspired with other tobacco companies to hide the health risks of smoking from the public.
The jury awarded $500,000 compensatory damages and $450,000 in punitive damages to the Maddox family. It was only the third time a jury has awarded damages in a tobacco liability case. The other two cases were overturned on appeal.
Shirley Ford Green, 73, of Richmond, died Wednesday, August 12, 1998.
A native of Milford, CT, she was the founder and first executive director of Agoraphobics Building Independent Lives (ABIL), a nationwide self help organization for those with anxiety disorders.
Survivors include her husband, Charlie Green; her children, Deborah Green of Williamsburg, Chuck and Leslie Green of Glen Allen, Clarke Green of Kennett Square, PA, Jim Green of Chicago, IL; her grandchildren, Summer Ventis, Jeffrey Green and Robert Green; her sisters, Dorothy Ford MacAllister of CA, and Lorene Ford Cary of FL.
A funeral service was held at Chamberlayne United Methodist Church at 1 p.m. Saturday, August 15. Burial will be at Arlington National Cemetery on Wednesday, August 19 at 2 p.m.
Those wishing to give memorials are asked to consider Shirley Ford Green Memorial Fund c/o ABIL, 3805 Cutshaw Avenue, Ste. 415, Richmond, VA 23230.
Rosa ReBell Jackson Jennings died Monday, August 10, 1998 at Halifax Regional Hospital.
Mrs. Jennings was born in Halifax on January 29, 1944 the daughter of Doc Jackson and Alice Easley Jackson and was married to Willie Mac Jennings. She was a member of New Shiloh Baptist Church.
Survivors include her husband; one daughter, Dorothy Jennings of Camden, NJ; one son, Larry Jennings of Nathalie; one step-daughter, Mary Jackson of South Boston; one brother, Adolphus Jennings of Washington, DC; and three grandchildren.
Funeral services for Mrs. Jennings were held Saturday, August 15 at 1 p.m. at Sunflower Baptist Church in Nathalie with Rev. Timmie Dickerson conducting the service. Burial was in the church cemetery.
William Rogers Vaughan III of 371 Nalley Drive, Stone Mountain, GA died Wednesday, August 12, 1998 at his home. He was 52 years of age at the time of his death.
Mr. Vaughan was born in South Boston on December 28, 1945 the son of William Rogers Vaughan Jr. and Martha Haymes Vaughan.
Survivors include his mother of Richmond; two sisters, Sara Dillard Philpott of Fredericksburg and Martha 'Marty' Haymes Vaughan of Richmond; four nieces, Tracey Leigh Livengood, Martha Katherine Philpott, Sara Dillard Philpott, III, Elizabeth Harrison Philpott; two nephews, Albert Lee Philpott III and Vaughan Stiles Livengood.
Graveside services for Mr. Vaughan were held Sunday, August 16 at 3 p.m. in Oak Ridge Cemetery with Rev. DeWitt Loomis conducting the service.
Those wishing to give memorials are asked to consider the Patrick Henry Boys or Girls Home or the charity of your choice.
Mrs. Christine Barnes Carden of Scottsburg died Thursday, August 13 at Halifax Regional Hospital.
Mrs. Carden is survived by her husband, Cornelius Carden of Scottsburg; one daughter, Irene Mosley of Clarksville; four sisters, Malvia Keys of Chester, Annie Hamlett of Chesapeake, Catherine Rainey of Chase City and Geraldine Wilson of Boydton; three brothers, Howard Barnes of Hampton; David Barnes of Chase City and Garland Barnes of Merced, Ca.
Funeral services will be held tomorrow at 1:00 p.m. at St. Luke Baptist Church in Skipwith with burial to follow in the Barnes family cemetery.
The family will receive friends at C.H. Harris Funeral Home tonight from 7:00 to 8:00 p.m. and at all other times at 2059 Ashcake Creek Road, Scottsburg.
Horace C. Watson, 48, of Peekskill, N.Y. and formerly of Red Oak died Wednesday, august 12 at Hudson Valley Hospital. He was born in Charlotte County December 8, 1949 to John Henry Watson and Parthenia Watson. He was a member of Salem Baptist Church.
Mr. Watson is survived by one daughter, Nyrees Watson of Peekskill, N.Y.; his mother, Mrs. Parthenia Watson of Red Oak; three sisters, Mattie Walton of South Boston; Millie McRay of Bullock, N.C. and Laura Watson of Red Oak; Channie Watson of Clarksville and Otelia Watson of Alexandria; and five brothers, Clem Watson and John Watson, Jr., both of Red Oak, Alex Watson of Clover, Daniel Watson of Clarksville and Fred Watson of Chase City.
Funeral services will be held at 2:00 p.m. today at Salem Baptist Church, Red Oak with Rev. Harry Williams officiating. Burial will follow in the church cemetery.
Mr. Wiley Pender "Ben" O'Brien, age 65, of Farmville, N.C. died Thursday, August 13 at his home.
Funeral services were conducted Saturday from the Church Street Chapel of the Farmville Funeral Home by Rev. Randy Maynard and Rev. Stephen Prescott. Interment followed in the Hollywood Cemetery with Masonic rites.
Mr. O'Brien was a member of Marlboro Free Will Baptist Church and was also a member of the Farmville Lion's Club, the New Bern Scottish Rite, the New Bern Shrine Club, and the Farmville Masonic Lodge where he was master for two years. He retired from Carolina Telephone in 1988 with 33 years of service.
He is survived by his wife, Tootsie Upton O'Brien of the home; two daughters, Delane O. Fuquay and her husband, Dewey Fuquay and Angie O. Cunningham and her husband, Patrick Cunningham, all of Farmville; his mother, Annie Lamberth O'Brien of Roxboro, N.C.; one sister, Edith O. Dixon of Evergreen; two brothers, Patrick O'Brien of Durham, N.C. and Garland O'Brien of Plymouth, N.C.; four grandchildren, Christopher Tyler Fuquay, Cody Taylor Fuquay, Morgan Taylor Cunningham, and Carlyn Leigh Cunningham.
Mr. Cecil Robbins Gray, Jr. of Durham, N.C. died Friday, August 14 at Durham Regional Hospital. He was born in South Boston July 20, 1923 and was 75 years old.
He was the son of Cecil Robbins Gray and Marian Neven Barksdale Gray and was married to Faye Wilborn Gray. He was a member of the Watts Street Baptist Church, Durham, N.C. and a veteran of the US Army and US Army Air Corps. He also was retired from Wyeth Pharmaceuticals where he was a territorial manager.
In addition to his wife of the home, Mr. Gray is survived by one son, Cecil Robbins Gray III of The Forks, Maine; one daughter, Maryanne Gray Porrett of Raleigh, N.C.; three grandchildren, Katie Kristina Gray and Melanie Faye Gray, both of Portland, Maine and Nina Simone Porrett of Raleigh; one sister and brother-in-law, Virginia Gray and Robert Carl Carr of Winston-Salem, N.C.
Graveside services will be held today at 2:00 p.m. at Oak Ridge Cemetery with the Rev. Dr. Melvin Williams conducting. The family will receive friends at the home of the deceased, 600 Duluth St., Durham, N.C.