From: kpt@IISA.COM (Kevin P. Tyson)
Newsgroups: soc.culture.african.american
Subject: Re: The scheduled execution of William Andrews
Date: Mon, 20 Jul 92 21:49:39 
Organization: IISA
Reply-To: kpt@iisa.com
X-Mailer: uAccess - Macintosh Release: 1.5v5


In article <1992Jul20.013315.18993@leland.Stanford.EDU> (soc.culture.african.american), bacondip@amy3.stanford.edu (James Rucker) writes:
>
>
>HELP!!
>Does anyone know that a Black man will be executed on July 30 by the State  
>of Utah, despite the fact that he did not kill anybody?

I just finished listening to the NPR story on this fellow.  The
story they tell is at odds with yours in certain critical respects.

>
>I am puzzled and pissed that almost nobody in California knows who or what  
>I'm talking about.  There was a robbery that occurred in 1974 in Salt Lake  
>City, in which two men, one of whom was William Andrews, held several  

The actual number charged was three.  One of whom was acquitted.

>people hostage.  While Andrews participated in initially torturing some of  
>the hostages, he left when his companion (Selby) decided to shoot and kill
>the hostages.  

Andrews poured glasses of drain-o and forced at least one
person to drink it.  The news also said that he helped tape the
mouths of the victims after they drank the drain-o and left his
gun in the basement for his partner to use in the killing.

>After Andrews left, Selby killed the hostages in the  
>immediate vicinity, excluding a woman whom he raped and a man that he  
>nearly killed by kicking a pen through his head. In any case, Selby was  
>executed not long after the robbery and murders which were referred to as  

I think that an execution 14 years after the crime cannot
accurately be described as ``not long after.''

>the "Hi-Fi Murders" (since the shop they were attempting to rob was a  
>Hi-Fi store).  In any case, while Andrews participated in the initial  
>stages of brutalizing the hostages, this did not kill any of the hostages;  
>their death was caused by Selby shooting them.  The torture that Andrews  
>helped administer was making them drink Drano.  He poured the Drano while  
>Selby gave it to the hostages.  It is true that this could have killed the  
>hostages if they didn't receive medical help.  However, it is not clear  
>that Andrews knew this, and the victims not shot by Selby recovered with  
>no lasting damages from the torture that Andrews helped administer.  

One of the reasons that drain openers have a red skull and
cross bones is so that illiterate people will know that it's
poison.  While it was not clear from the story, I was left with
the impression that all three people charged with the crime
were members of the US Air Force at the time, an organization
that only employs the literate. The news story referred to the
survivors as emotionally and physically crippled for life.

>[...]
>I am not trying to let Andrews off of the hook; Andrews committed henious  
>crimes and and brutally violated the hostages.  I certainly hold him  
>accountable for his actions.  However, does this man deserve to die given  
>that 1) is not clear that he thought his actions would lead to someone  
>else's death, 

Are you saying that this fellow is one of the stupidest
creatures on God's green Earth?

>2) he clearly refused to shoot any hostages, and 

Was the news story inaccurate when it reported that he left his
gun for his accomplice to use?

>3) no one died from his torture?  

Correct.  It appears that they were shot to death before they
had a chance to die from his ministrations.  I'm sure that the
two survivors could give Paul Robeson a run for his money as
contra-bassists.  I assume that you feel that they should be
thankful for this ``gift.''

>At this point, it looks like on July 30, he will indeed die.

You would prefer that he is subjected to a lifetime of
involuntary anal intercourse?

>[...]
>While I don't know as much about the Hoffman case, it is the case which  
>many in Salt Lake City and surrounding areas point to as evidence that  
>racism underlies the planned execution of Andrews.  

The argument presented by one of the prosecutors to counter
this line of reasoning was that the third black man charged
with the crime was acquitted.

>At this point it is  
>likely that nothing will stop the execution.  I have presented a summary  
>of two articles which recently appeared in Salt Lake City papers.  I urge  
>anyone who feels compelled to help or is at least interested in learning  
>more about this to call me.  Only through reading first hand about the  

If you would be so kind as to address the points raised in the
NPR story broadcast this evening I'd appreciate it greatly. If
you would prefer, then send me any written material you have
that does address these points, provided that it can be freely
reproduced, and I will scan it in an post it here as a
follow-up.  The address is PO Box 382, Tennent NJ 07763. After
listening to the news this evening I was struck by the fact
that both Selby and Andrews enjoyed very long, rich and
rewarding lives compared to the fate that would have befallen
them if one of my relatives had been a victim.  But perhaps I'm
just a victim of manipulation by the media.

>[...]
>Don't let this be another Black man who goes out in the wrong way and for  
>the wrong reasons.

What would you prefer be done with Andrews?  How would you hold
him accountable for his actions?  Should he provide restitution
to his victims and if so what kind of restitution?  Are you
opposed to his murder because you oppose murder in general, the
murder of black people by the state or what?

Kevin P. Tyson 
kpt@iisa.com