John Albert Taylor

John Albert Taylor
Utah State Prison mug shot
Born(1959-06-06)June 6, 1959
Ogden, Utah, U.S.[2]
DiedJanuary 26, 1996(1996-01-26) (aged 36)
Utah State Prison, Draper, Utah, U.S.[3]
Cause of deathExecution by firing squad
Criminal statusExecuted at Utah State Prison on January 26, 1996[3]
Parent(s)Albert Taylor
Gaylene Taylor[2]
Conviction(s)Carrying a concealed weapon, burglary – 1977, Florida
Sexual assault, aggravated murder – December 1989, Utah[1]
Criminal penaltyDeath by firing squad

John Albert Taylor (June 6, 1959 – January 26, 1996) was an American who was convicted of burglary and carrying a concealed weapon in the state of Florida, and sexual assault and murder in the state of Utah. Taylor's own sister tipped off police in June 1989 after 11-year-old Charla King was found raped and strangled to death in Washington Terrace, Utah. His fingerprints were found at the crime scene, which was located in an apartment complex where he had been staying. In December 1989, Taylor was sentenced to death and placed on death row at Utah State Prison.[1]

Taylor gave up appealing his sentence after his request for retrial was rejected by the Utah Supreme Court, though he continued to maintain his innocence.[1] He became the second person to be executed by firing squad in the United States (after Gary Gilmore) since the death penalty was reinstated in 1976.[4] Taylor said he chose this method of execution to embarrass the state of Utah.[5] On January 26, 1996, the day of Taylor's execution, legislation was introduced in the Utah House of Representatives to eliminate the firing squad.[6]

  1. ^ a b c DeVoy, Beverly (1996-01-26). "Taylor knew from the start he would die". Deseret News. pp. 1–3. Retrieved 2010-10-02.
  2. ^ a b Cite error: The named reference DeseretNews-19920316-stop was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  3. ^ a b Cite error: The named reference SLT-19960126-executes was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  4. ^ Whittell, Giles (2010-04-24). "Utah death row inmate Ronnie Lee Gardner elects to die by firing squad". The Times. London. Retrieved 2010-10-02.[dead link]
  5. ^ Westcott, Kathryn (2010-06-18). "How and why Gardner was shot". BBC News. Retrieved 2010-06-21.
  6. ^ Donaldson, Amy (1996-01-26). "Firing squad carries out execution". Deseret News. pp. 1–3. Retrieved 2010-10-02.