XPost: alt.society.liberalism, ok.general, sac.politics   
   XPost: talk.politics.guns   
   From: dang-em@hang-em.com   
      
   Kenneth Meers practically grew up at the Root-N-Scoot convenience store in   
   Oklahoma City. He began working there at the age of 13 and came to love it   
   so much, he and his brother eventually bought it.   
      
   To Meers, the Root-N-Scoot was much more than a convenience store. He and   
   the store became an integral part of the community. Meers would buy   
   groceries for people down on their luck out of his own pocket, and every   
   year, he held a Christmas raffle for neighborhood kids.   
      
   And then one terrible night in June 1992, the store became the site of his   
   final moments alive.   
      
   Two men in came in to rob the store. When Meers charged them with a broom,   
   one of them shot him in the face.   
      
   "Kenny, who was 31 at the time of his death, was loving, hard-working, had   
   a good soul, and simply did not have a mean bone in his body," the   
   Oklahoma Attorney General's Office said in a filing obtained by USA TODAY.   
      
   Now more than three decades after the crime, Oklahoma is about to execute   
   Emmanuel Littlejohn for Meers' murder. Littlejohn has always maintained   
   that while he was one of the two robbers, he was not the shooter - an   
   argument that appeared to sway the state's parole board, which recommended   
   clemency for him in a rare move.   
      
   Littlejohn's execution remains set for Thursday because Republican   
   Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt would need to approve the recommendation in   
   order for Littlejohn's life to be spared.   
      
   As the execution nears, USA TODAY is looking at who Meers was, more about   
   the crime and how Littlejohn is fighting the ultimate punishment.   
      
   What happened to Kenneth Meers?   
   Emmanuel Littlejohn and Glenn Bethany conspired to rob the Root-N-Scoot in   
   order to pay off debts to a drug supplier, according to the attorney   
   general's office.   
      
   Witnesses differed on who fired the single shot that killed Meers.   
      
   Clemency activists for Littlejohn point to witnesses that said the "taller   
   man" was the shooter, referring to Bethany. The state put forward court   
   testimony from the survivors of the robbery who identified Littlejohn as   
   the shooter.   
      
   Bethany was convicted of first-degree murder and sentenced to life in   
   prison without the possibility of parole in 1993. Littlejohn was convicted   
   of first-degree murder and sentenced to death.   
      
   Who was Kenneth Meers?   
   Kenneth Meers was the youngest of six children and grew up in southeast   
   Oklahoma City. He loved music, his job, and skiing in Colorado, according   
   to the state's anti-clemency packet.   
      
   His brother Bill Meers, who co-owned the Root-N-Scoot with Kenneth, told   
   the court during Littlejohn's trial that his brother had grown attached to   
   the store and the community surrounding it.   
      
   Their mother, Delores Meers, said in court that Kenneth would regularly   
   support those who had fallen on hard times.   
      
   "If there was anybody in really bad need or somebody that he knew needed   
   help, and didn't say anything to him, he would always buy them groceries,"   
   Delores said in court testimony included in the state's anti-clemency   
   packet. "I've seen him buy kids shoes. I've seen him buy coats."   
      
   Every Christmas, she said her son would have all the area kids put their   
   name in a box, and then he'd have a drawing to give away gifts like   
   bicycles, TVs and stereos. "Just for the kids," she said.   
      
   The state said that Kenneth was particularly close with his mother and   
   called her every day.   
      
   Family supports execution of Littlejohn   
   The Meers family spoke in support of the state executing Littlejohn.   
      
   "I believe my mom died of a broken heart," Bill Meers said during the   
   hearing.   
      
   After his testimony, the family read a letter from Delores Meers that she   
   wrote before her death.   
      
   "Since this all happened, it just seems as if everything has fallen   
   apart," she wrote. "There are so many times that I just need him to talk   
   to about everything. It just isn't right for a child to go before their   
   parent."   
      
   Littlejohn told USA TODAY ahead of the clemency hearing that he sought the   
   family's forgiveness.   
      
   "I've had someone kill my cousin and her baby. They were put on death row   
   and I wanted him to be executed," Littlejohn said. "So I understand their   
   emotions and I pray for them. But I didn't kill their son."   
      
   Bill Meers rejects the attempt, saying: "I cannot and will not forgive   
   this man for carelessly finding Kenny's life meant nothing."   
      
   https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2024/09/25/kenneth-meers-   
   emmanuel-littlejohn-execution-oklahoma/75079136007/   
      
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    * Origin: you cannot sedate... all the things you hate (1:229/2)