198:. Further questions concerning Bower's innocence were raised in 1989, when a woman called Pearl called one of Bower's attorney's, explaining that the killings were the result of a drug deal gone wrong, and that her ex-boyfriend Lynn and three of his friends, Ches, Rocky and Bear were responsible. The defence lawyers also argued that the Fiocchi ammunition type was not rare, was widely sold for small game shooting and practice shooting and the state prosecutors knew this at the trial. The wife of one of the men also corroborated that her husband had been involved in the murder. Ches admitted that he owned a 0.22 pistol which used Fiocchi ammunition.
177:
Bower initially lied to the investigators, asserting that he had never been to the hangar where the murders took place. He later acknowledged being there, but maintained his innocence, arguing that the men were alive when he left with the disassembled plane he had purchased, although he was not able
173:
At Bower's trial, prosecutors argued that he had killed Tate in order to steal an aircraft he had previously agreed to buy, he then killed the other three men when they unexpectedly showed up at the hangar. Investigators found parts of the plane in his home, as well as
Fiocchi ammunition similar to
164:
On
October 8, 1983, the bodies of four men, Bob Tate, Jerry Brown, Philip Good and Ronald Mayes, were discovered in a Texas airplane hangar, all were shot in the head at close range. Mayes was a former police officer and Good was a sheriff's deputy. Bower was later arrested after pieces of the
233:
In his final statement, Bower thanked his family and friends for their support, as well as his attorneys, saying "I have fought the good fight, I held my faith. I am not going to say goodbye, I will simply say, until we meet again. I love you very, very much."
193:
After Bower's conviction, his lawyers argued the prosecution had withheld information relating to a police tip that the killings may have been connected to drug trafficking, noting the high level of drug activity in the area and Tate's history of selling
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201:
Numerous appeals have been brought since Bower's conviction, questioning how Bower was sentenced to death, despite there being no physical evidence pinning him to the crime scene, such as fingerprints, and no witnesses.
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156:. A college-educated chemical salesman, prior to his conviction, Bower had no criminal record and was married with two children.
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144:, aged 67, becoming the oldest prisoner executed by Texas since 1976, until the execution of 70-year-old Billie Coble in 2019.
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what was used in the killings. The prosecution argued that the ammunition provided a vital link, as its type was very rare.
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124:(November 20, 1947 – June 3, 2015) was an American man executed for the 1983 murders of four men in
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520:"Doubts Still Plague the 31-Year-Old Lester Bower Case But Texas is About to Kill Him Anyway"
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449:"Texas executes Lester Bower, inmate who spent 3 decades on death row"
390:"Texas Executes Lester Bower, State's Oldest Prisoner on Death Row"
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and pronounced dead at 6:36 p.m on June 3, 2015, hours after the
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On April 28, 1984, Bower was found guilty of four counts of
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rejected a last-ditch appeal from Bower's lawyer. Justice
307:"Texas executes Lester Bower after 31 years on death row"
152:
Lester Leroy Bower Jr. was born on
November 20, 1947, in
249:
List of people executed in the United States in 2015
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210:Bower was executed by lethal injection in the
555:
420:"Did Texas Execute an Innocent Lester Bower?"
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1313:People executed by Texas by lethal injection
495:"On Death Row for 31 Years, Inmate Executed"
244:List of people executed in Texas, 2010–2019
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178:to produce a receipt for the transaction.
165:victim's aircraft were found at his home.
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1064:Wilkes-Barre & Jenkins Township, PA
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1308:People convicted of murder by Texas
1238:mass shootings in the United States
571:Mass shootings in the United States
16:American mass murderer (1947–2015)
14:
1283:1983 murders in the United States
474:LII / Legal Information Institute
1298:Executed American mass murderers
1293:21st-century executions by Texas
278:Death Penalty Information Center
274:"Executed But Possibly Innocent"
493:Langford, Terri (2015-06-03).
1:
418:Madigan, Tim (14 June 2015).
230:dissented from the majority.
1318:People from Arlington, Texas
518:Smith, Jordan (2015-06-01).
185:and was sentenced to death.
216:United States Supreme Court
1334:
1303:Executed people from Texas
132:. Bower spent 31 years on
1234:
810:Pennsylvania Turnpike, PA
189:Subsequent investigations
140:. He was executed at the
115:
87:
1128:Springfield Township, PA
142:Texas State Penitentiary
573:in the 1980s and before
332:"Death Row Information"
222:, as well as Justices
122:Lester Leroy Bower Jr.
33:Lester Leroy Bower Jr.
1136:Miami-Dade County, FL
786:Readmond Township, MI
224:Ruth Bader Ginsburg
1080:Grayson County, TX
770:Clinton County, PA
336:www.tdcj.texas.gov
138:stays of execution
1265:
1264:
1200:Winston-Salem, NC
1048:Grand Prairie, TX
965:San Francisco, CA
719:Wichita Falls, TX
499:The Texas Tribune
424:POLITICO Magazine
136:and received six
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43:November 20, 1947
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94:Conviction(s)
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68:, Texas, U.S.
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1216:Stockton, CA
1192:Winnetka, IL
1168:Palm Bay, FL
1096:Brooklyn, NY
1079:
933:Hamilton, OH
837:Valencia, CA
665:Kelayres, PA
527:. Retrieved
523:
513:
502:. Retrieved
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488:
477:. Retrieved
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453:. Retrieved
451:. 2015-06-03
427:. Retrieved
423:
397:. Retrieved
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315:. Retrieved
313:. 2015-06-04
311:the Guardian
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281:. Retrieved
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60:(2015-06-03)
58:June 3, 2015
23:Lester Bower
1288:2015 deaths
1278:1947 births
1176:Cayucos, CA
1152:Oakland, CA
1072:Seattle, WA
877:Detroit, MI
853:Jackson, MS
641:Belfast, ME
606:Chicago, IL
1272:Categories
1160:Shelby, NC
1144:Edmond, OK
1104:Dallas, TX
973:Boston, MA
869:Dallas, TX
754:Austin, TX
746:Orcutt, CA
700:Camden, NJ
684:Salina, UT
529:2024-03-30
504:2021-07-31
479:2021-07-31
455:2021-07-31
429:2021-07-31
399:2021-07-31
370:2021-07-31
341:2021-07-31
317:2021-07-31
283:2021-07-31
255:References
39:1947-11-20
1056:Miami, FL
1040:Salem, OR
1008:Norco, CA
925:Olean, NY
721:(1950–51)
206:Execution
148:Biography
134:death row
1236:Part of
845:Kent, OH
762:Mesa, AZ
394:ABC News
238:See also
78:Executed
692:Georgia
196:cocaine
1226:(1989)
1218:(1989)
1210:(1988)
1202:(1988)
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756:(1966)
748:(1965)
729:(1954)
702:(1949)
694:(1946)
686:(1945)
667:(1934)
659:(1934)
651:(1933)
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608:(1929)
589:(1764)
49:, U.S.
1258:2020s
1254:2010s
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829:1970s
738:1960s
711:1950s
676:1940s
617:1930s
598:1920s
579:1760s
169:Trial
160:Crime
130:Texas
110:Death
226:and
55:Died
29:Born
365:TPR
80:by
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