Gerald Eldridge: First of Three Consecutive Texas Executions This Week

UPDATE: Gerarld Eldridge’s execution has been postponed.

____________

Texas has three executions scheduled on three consecutive days starting tomorrow:

• Gerald Cornelius Eldridge — Tuesday, Nov 17
• Danielle Nathaniel Simpson — Wednesday, Nov 18
• Robert Lee Thompson — Thursday, Nov 19

Most states with the death penalty won’t actually execute this many murderers in an entire year.

I’ll write separate posts for Simpson (perhaps the vilest of the three POSs being executed this week) and Thompson.

Gerald Cornelius Eldridge

Gerald Eldridge: Too smart for his own good

On January 4, 1993, Eldridge broke into the home of his former girlfriend, Cynthia Bogany. Once inside, he first shot Cynthia’s 9-year old daughter, Chirissa between the eyes at point-blank range as she slept on the couch. He then shot his 7-year old son Terrell in the shoulder before chasing down their mother and shooting her to death as she begged for her life.

Eldridge’s last and final appeal was on the basis that he was mentally retarded, and thus ineligible for the death penalty.

Except for the fact that he isn’t:

The fact that Mr. Eldridge graduated in the seventieth percentile of his class at Jack Yates High School and passed a pipe-fitters exam undermined his claim of a deficit in academic functioning. Regular employment, good performance reviews, and pay raises doomed Mr. Eldridge’s claim that he was deficient in the area of work. Because he had girlfriends in high school, subsequent relationships with other women, and pen pals around the world, Mr. Eldridge did not suffer from a deficit in social functioning. Cashing paychecks, sharing living expenses, shopping for groceries, and performing household chores showed the absence of a deficit in the area of home living.

In the eyes of the Fifth Circuit, therefore, Mr. Eldridge’s claim of mental retardation and his desperate attempt to avoid the death penalty could have succeeded only if he had shown himself to be a bigger loser than he actually is.

I’m sure the ladies at Prison Talk are beside themselves over the loss of one of their favorite scum pals. He probably had 3-4 girlfriends amongst their ranks.