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3d ago

Judge Finds S.C. Inmate Steven Bixby Competent for Execution

The decision turns on a finding that his unconventional legal views do not impair his ability to work with counsel.

FILE- Two crosses still stand in the front yard Tuesday, Jan. 23, 2007, where Sheriff's Sgt. Danny Wilson and constable Donnie Ouzts were shot outside the house of Arthur and Rita Bixby in Abbeville, S.C. (AP Photo/Mary Ann Chastain, File)
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Overview

  • Circuit Judge R. Scott Sprouse issued the Sept. 12 order finding Bixby competent after an August evidentiary hearing.
  • The court credited state and court experts Dr. Richard Frierson and Dr. Donna Maddox over defense witness Dr. Richart DeMier, whose incompetence opinion the judge called not credible.
  • Sprouse determined Bixby’s beliefs about unconstitutional laws and property rights are not delusions and that he understands and can choose to cooperate with his attorneys.
  • The ruling allows the death sentence to proceed with no execution date set as Bixby’s lawyer expects to seek review by the South Carolina Supreme Court.
  • Bixby was sentenced to death for killing Deputy Danny Wilson and Constable Donnie Ouzts in 2003 after a road-widening dispute that led to a prolonged standoff.