Houston Chronicle, May 18, 2000: 

Gary Graham’s sixth execution date is little more than a month away, but unlike the others, it is all but certain that a lethal dose of drugs will finally silence him.

“June 22 is certainly on my mind. At the same time, I have tremendous faith in the brothers and sisters in the community,” Graham said in an interview Wednesday at the Charles Terrell Unit in Livingston. “We have had execution countdowns before. Once again, the eyes of the world are on Texas.” 

Earlier this month, the U.S. Supreme Court declined to hear his latest appeal, clearing the way for the man who has been on death row for 19 years to be executed.

Graham, who has begun using the name Shaka Sankofa, still maintains he did not murder Bobby Lambert in Houston and that he will physically resist being executed.

“I’m not willing to pay a debt I do not owe. I cannot and will not cooperate with this lynching,” Graham said. “They are going to do what they have to do. That’s why I’m willing to accept gas (pepper spray).”

Prison spokesman Larry Fitzgerald confirmed that guards did use pepper spray on Graham after his third refusal to voluntarily move to another cell. Fitzgerald said it is policy to move inmates when they get an execution date.

“That’s true. We did gas him. We’ll probably gas him again if he continues to refuse to cooperate,” Fitzgerald said. “That’s the way the penitentiary works.”

Fitzgerald said prison officials are aware of Graham’s statements to resist execution.

“He’s indicated he’s not going to cooperate. We will be prepared for it. We will carry out the orders of the court,” Fitzgerald said. 

Graham was 17 when he was sentenced to death for the May 1981 murder of Lambert, 53, outside a Houston supermarket. 

His case has sparked interest on both sides of the death penalty debate.

It has been a cause for Hollywood celebrities and a rallying point for death penalty foes. Death penalty advocates say it’s an example of how inmates manipulate the system.

Different aspects of Graham’s case have been reviewed by state and federal courts more than 30 times.

His appeal lawyers contend there are witnesses that they’ve found after the trial who can eliminate him as a suspect. They say those witnesses haven’t had a chance to be heard in a court.

Meanwhile, with the date looming, Graham supporters have stepped up their public protest.

Last Saturday, Graham supporters demonstrated outside the Prairie View A&M University graduation ceremony where Gov. George W. Bush was the speaker. A mass rally is planned for May 31 and a Muslim minister, Robert Muhammad, has called for a fast starting Monday.

Anthony Freddie of the Gary Graham/Shaka Sankofa Coalition for Justice said the group is circulating a petition and encouraging supporters to flood Bush and the Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles with e-mails, phone calls, letters and faxes asking for clemency.

“This is as critical as it can get when you get to the point where there is no federal jurisdiction to have to step in,” Freddie said.

Graham’s lawyer, Jack Zimmermann, said he is following leads on other suspects. He said he is checking into Lambert’s background to determine if anyone had reason to kill him. He still plans to file a petition for clemency by June 1.

“Obviously we’re getting down to the end here. This is extremely difficult 19 years later. But we can’t throw our hands up in the air and quit because it’s hard,” Zimmermann said.

Because of client privilege, Zimmermann declined to comment on any advice he may have given Graham concerning his pledge to resist execution.

“He’s very frustrated having lived in a cage for 19 years,” Zimmermann said.