AP News, July 27th, 2007
A man who killed an 86-year-old widow in her home on Christmas Eve 27 years ago was executed Thursday.
Darrell Grayson, 46, flashed peace signs at witnesses, smiled and nodded at those he recognized and said, "Peace." He was pronounced dead at 6:16 p.m. CDT at Holman prison near Atmore.
After midnight on Christmas Eve in 1980, two men entered Annie Laura Orr's home. They pulled a pillowcase over her head, bound her with masking tape and raped her, according to the court record. Orr died of suffocation, and the men robbed her of about $30 and her wedding rings.
Investigators found Grayson's blood-splattered shirt hidden under a rock near his home. The blood stains matched the victim's blood type, according to court records.
Grayson and his co-defendant, Victor Kennedy, were convicted of capital murder. Kennedy was executed in 1999. Grayson lost a federal appeal last week challenging Alabama's lethal-injection procedures as being unconstitutionally cruel.
His supporters rallied in Montgomery on Wednesday, urging Gov. Bob Riley to intervene in order for DNA tests to determine if Grayson raped the elderly woman. Grayson's conviction did not include the rape accusation, but his supporters say it was an aggravating factor cited by prosecutors to get the death sentence.
Riley, in refusing requests to intervene, called Orr's death "horrifying" and said "the overwhelming physical evidence left a jury no doubt (Grayson) perpetrated a cruel and monstrous crime upon a helpless elderly woman."
The victim's granddaughter, Lee Rawlings Binion, wiped away tears as she witnessed the execution. In a statement, she said, "The Orr family has seen the final chapter of a 27-year struggle.
"We are grateful that justice has finally been served."
