JACKSON, Georgia — In a somber event that marked the state’s first execution in over four years, Willie James Pye, 59, was put to death Wednesday evening. Pye was convicted of the abduction, rape, and shooting death of his former girlfriend, Alicia Lynn Yarbrough, back in November 1993. The lethal injection of pentobarbital was administered at the state prison in Jackson, with Pye pronounced dead at 11:03 p.m.
Late appeals were made by Pye’s legal team to the U.S. Supreme Court, seeking intervention to halt the execution. However, the justices unanimously denied the appeal. The defense argued that the state had not fulfilled the required conditions for resuming executions after COVID-19 restrictions and claimed that Pye was ineligible for execution due to intellectual disability. State responses dismissed these claims, stating they had previously been settled by the courts and held no merit.
Pye, along with Chester Adams and a 15-year-old, had planned to rob Yarbrough’s current partner before the tragic events unfolded. After forcing their way into Yarbrough’s home during a party in a nearby town, they abducted her, leaving her infant behind. The group proceeded to rape Yarbrough at a motel before ultimately shooting her three times on a dirt road, where her body was discovered hours later.
Adams, Pye’s accomplice, pleaded guilty to charges in 1997 and received five consecutive life prison terms. This stands in contrast to Pye’s fate, as he was found guilty of murder, kidnapping, armed robbery, rape, and burglary in June 1996 and subsequently sentenced to death. Pye’s legal team argued in court filings that crucial testimony from the teenager witness was inconsistent and suggested Yarbrough’s involvement in the events was voluntary.
Additionally, Pye’s lawyers highlighted his troubled upbringing, marked by poverty, neglect, and abuse, as contributing factors to his actions. They also pointed to possible brain damage from fetal alcohol syndrome, affecting his decision-making and impulse control. Despite pleas for resentencing due to inadequate representation during the trial, Pye’s appeals were largely unsuccessful, with the latest ruling from the full federal appeals court upholding his sentence in October 2022.