Missouri: David Hosier executed – despite claims of innocence and circumstantial evidence
On Tuesday evening, 69-year-old David Hosier was executed with a lethal injection, an overdose of pentobarbital, in the US state of Missouri. He was sentenced to death for allegedly murdering a married couple in 2009.
Hosier admitted that he had an affair with the woman, but also maintained his innocence. The public prosecutor’s office alleged an act of revenge that was preceded by corresponding threats.
Hosier was arrested in Oklahoma with a remarkable amount of weapons in his car; ballistic examinations were inconclusive, however, so that the murder weapon could not really be identified.
DNA traces also did not point to Hosier as the perpetrator – the conviction was ultimately based on circumstantial evidence.
Hosier expressed dissatisfaction with his lawyers, who, for example, focused on his childhood instead of his claims of innocence in his plea for clemency.
A few weeks before his execution, David Hosier was taken to hospital with massive heart problems.
Governor Parson refused a pardon on the grounds that Hosier had shown no remorse.
In his pre-written last words, Hosier declared: “I was able to learn to be the best possible version of myself. I leave you all in love. Don’t cry for me. Just join me when your time comes.”