Warner Commutes Death Sentence

"Kirkland & Ellis, LLP is gratified that Governor Warner has exercised his executive power of clemency to commute Mr. Lovitt's sentence to life in prison," the statement said. "We believe this decision to be entirely proper given the extraordinary circumstances of Mr. Lovitt's case."

Mary Dicks, the victim's mother, said last night that she was disappointed and remains convinced that Lovitt killed her son and deserves to be executed.

"I don't think it's right," Dicks said. "I don't know what they want jurors for if the jury votes for death and they give him life in prison. He killed Clayton, and Clayton was a hardworking person."

Interest in Lovitt's fate, and Warner's decision, is intense. Officials at the Virginia Department of Corrections said Tuesday that they have received calls from media in Poland, Australia, France and Italy about the execution.

In an interview on WTOP radio Tuesday morning, Warner said: "No case has been more troubling. . . . Rest assured, there's no case I've spent more time thinking about, praying about, reflecting on."

Holsworth said he believes Warner does not base clemency decisions on political considerations. But he said that commuting Lovitt's sentence will appeal to many hard-core, anti-death penalty Democrats and could help Warner compete with U.S. Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton (N.Y.) and others for the party's presidential nomination.

"His biggest political challenge right now is appealing to the hearts of the Democratic Party activists," Holsworth said.

Some past candidates for president have had their actions on criminal justice issues come back to haunt them. Former Massachusetts governor Michael S. Dukakis supported a state furlough program only to be linked later in GOP campaign ads to Willie Horton, who committed a murder while out on furlough.

But those who urged Warner to grant clemency included Starr and a contingent of academics, law students and forensic experts, all citing concerns about the destruction of evidence. Former Republican attorney general Mark L. Earley, who is now president of Prison Fellowship Ministries in Northern Virginia, said it would be "morally unfair" to carry out the execution.

In a statement Tuesday, Virginia Attorney General Judith W. Jagdmann (R) said: "The Constitution of Virginia provides the Governor with the authority to grant clemency where in his view the circumstances so warrant. Our thoughts and prayers are with the victim's family."

During Lovitt's trial, a customer who came into the pool hall during the attack testified he was 80 percent certain that Lovitt was the assailant. And a cellmate told jurors that Lovitt had confessed.

Forensic scientists found Dicks's DNA, along with that of another person, on scissors left at the scene. Tests done on the unknown genetic material were inconclusive.

This week, Robin W. Cotton, a forensic scientist who recently helped conduct a review of procedures at Virginia's forensic laboratory, sent a letter that said a prosecutor "grossly" misstated evidence during closing arguments. Cotton also said that scientific tests using the latest technology "likely" would have resulted in a more complete picture.

Post-conviction DNA testing has resulted in the exoneration of more than 160 inmates nationwide, including eight men in Virginia. Such testing has prompted Warner to pardon two men who spent time in prison for rapes they did not commit. Since 1976, each Virginia governor who could do so has commuted a death sentence.