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James Edward
CLAYTON
Classification: Murderer
Characteristics:
Robbery
Number of victims: 1
Date of murder:
September 17, 1987
Date of arrest:
6 days after
Date of birth:
November 30,
1966
Victim profile: Lori
M. Barrett (female, 27)
Method of murder:
Shooting
(.243 caliber rifle)
Location: Taylor County, Texas, USA
Status:
Executed
by lethal injection in Texas on May 25,
2000
Summary:
Elementary school teacher Lori Barrett was last seen alive as she
left her night job, at the Dillard's department store in Abilene,
Texas, on the evening of Sept. 17, 1987.
When she did not arrive home, the school superintendent, Cecil Davis,
drove to Lori's house. He found no one at home and reported her
missing to police.
Later that day, police went to her home, which appeared in normal
condition ecept for a bathroom window ajar and glass in the sink.
Pry marks were found outside the window and her car was missing. Her
car was later found abandoned at Abilene Christian University.
A private investigator hired by the family eventually questioned an
acquaintance of Clayton, who said that he had seen Clayton driving
the car on September 17th, and that he had borrowed the car from
someone named Lori.
Clayton lived only a half block away from Lori's home and when
questioned by police, admitted that he had been driving the car
without her permission. He was then arrested for unlawful use of a
motor vehicle.
In a trash dumpster outside Clayton's apartment, Lori's sister
discovered the license plate from Lori's car, mail with Lori's name
on it, and a belt which Lori had worn on September 17th.
Executing a search warrant on Clayton's home, police found an
insurance card with Lori Barrett's name on it.
Barrett's body was ultimately found on September 29th in neighboring
Jones County. The body, already in a state of advanced decomposition,
was wrapped in a blanket, secured with black electrical wire.
The coroner stated that there had been two "through-and-through"
high velocity gunshot wounds to Lori's head and neck. He also noted
that a ligature and gag had been applied to her neck and mouth. A
Remington Peters .243 caliber cartridge case was also found.
Lori Barrett's body was identified through the use of dental records.
In second search of Clayton's home, police recovered a Winchester
.243 caliber rifle and ammunition, later determined to be the murder
weapon.
Clayton claimed that he had stolen the rifle that was used as the
murder weapon from a former roommate's home about a week before the
murder.
Texas Attorney General
Media Advisory
James Edward Clayton Scheduled to
be Executed
May 25, 2000
AUSTIN - Texas Attorney General John Cornyn
offers the following information on James Edward Clayton who is
scheduled to be executed after 6 p.m.,Thursday, May 25th:
FACTS OF THE CRIME
Lori Barrett was last seen alive as she left her
night job, at the Dillard's department store in Abilene, Texas, on
the evening of Sept. 17, 1987.
That night, Barrett's co-worker,
Pamela Cummings, unsuccessfully attempted to call Lori at home,
between the hours of 9:30 p.m. and 12:30 a.m.
The next morning,
Cummings again unsuccessfully tried to contact Lori. Lori, also a
teacher at the Hawley, Texas, elementary school, failed to report to
work on the morning of Sept. 18.
Cummings was alarmed because Lori
should have arrived home from Dillard's between 9:00 p.m. and 10:00
p.m on Sept. 17.
Cummings then contacted Lori's school principal to
determine if she was ill, and, finding that the administration had
not heard from her, Cummings informed the Hawley School District's
superintendent of her inability to make contact with Lori.
The
superintendent, Cecil Davis, was familiar with Lori's usual work
habits and decided that her unusual absence warranted a visit to her
house. Davis drove to Lori's house in Abilene, knocked on the door
and, receiving no response, asked her neighbors if they had seen her.
The neighbors stated that they had not seen Lori, and Davis
immediately went to an Abilene police station. His report (along
with another similar report by Lori's sister) prompted the Abilene
Police Department to begin a missing person investigation.
Later that day, members of the Abilene Police
Department, escorted by Lori's brother-in-law, entered Lori's house.
The locked house appeared to be in normal condition (although the
security chain had been left latched on the front door), but on
closer inspection it was discovered that a bathroom window was
slightly ajar, that a sink tile had been dislodged and that a small
amount of grass was in the sink.
The bathroom window was known to be
difficult to operate, and Lori had always needed the assistance of
her brother-in-law to open it.
A police officer also found scrape
marks on the outside of the window frame that were consistent with
prying with a flat blade screwdriver. A screwdriver was found on a
brick ledge nearby. Lori's car was also missing. Police also found
an earring Lori had worn on Sept. 17, and a curling iron with the
cord cut off.
Shortly thereafter, the Abilene police were
called to the Abilene Christian University (ACU) campus to
investigate a wrecked and abandoned car.
The police determined that
the car belonged to Lori Barrett. In the interim, Lori's family had
decided to hire William Hurley, a private investigator. Hurley began
to investigate the circumstances surrounding the wrecked car, and
eventually questioned one of James Edward Clayton's acquaintances
who had seen Clayton with the car around 11:00 p.m. on the night of
Sept. 17, and also at the time of the wreck on the morning of the
18th. The acquaintance told Hurley that Clayton said that he had
borrowed the car from someone named Lori.
On Sept. 23, police officers went to Clayton's
residence, a garage apartment approximately half a block away from
Lori's house. Clayton was told that the police were investigating
the accident involving Lori's car, and Clayton admitted that he had
been driving the car without her permission.
Clayton was advised of
his rights and then consented to a search of his apartment.
Following questioning, Clayton declined to voluntarily accompany
officers to the Abilene police station, and was arrested for
unlawful use of a motor vehicle.
In a trash dumpster outside
Clayton's apartment, Lori's sister discovered the license plate from
Lori's car, mail with Lori's name on it, and a bag. The bag
contained a belt which Lori had worn on Sept.17th and a partially
eaten hamburger. A search warrant for Clayton's residence was
obtained on Sept. 24, and, once inside, the police discovered an
insurance card with Lori Barrett's name on it.
Following publicity in the local media and at
Barrett's church, a large scale search for her began in the Abilene
area. Her body was ultimately found on Sept. 29 in neighboring Jones
County.
The body, already in a state of advanced decomposition, was
wrapped in a blanket, secured with black electrical wire. A
Remington Peters .243 caliber cartridge case was also found. Lori
Barrett's body was identified through the use of dental records.
The police then obtained an evidentiary search
warrant for certain items they had previously observed in Clayton's
apartment.
Among the items seized there were a pair of boots, a
Winchester .243 caliber rifle, and .243 caliber ammunition. Lab
analysis of the rifle and ammunition produced a positive match with
the cartridge case found at the scene. Clayton was then charged with
murder and capital murder.
Clayton had been extremely agitated because his
girlfriend, in the days prior to Lori's disappearance, was trying to
end their relationship. Clayton was reportedly upset and wanted to "kill
his girlfriend and her parents and their dog."
Clayton told a friend
that he had been in the military, that he "was trained to kill,"
that "killing was the only way he could vent his anger, and it was
the only thing he could do about it."
Lori's neighbor recalled
having heard screams at approximately 9:55 p.m. on the night of her
disappearance, and the volume and duration of the screams prompted
him to arm himself prior to investigating the sound. Although he was
unable to locate the source, the screams were loud enough to be
heard over the sounds of a rainstorm that night.
The coroner, Dr. James Weiner, stated that there
had been two "through-and-through" high velocity gunshot wounds to
Lori's head and neck. He also noted that a ligature and gag had been
applied to her neck and mouth, respectively.
The doctor explained
that although Lori's body had only been deceased for a maximum of 12
days, the mechanics of decomposition had been accelerated by the mid-Sept.
heat. This had produced a body condition in which it was impossible
to determine whether other factors, e.g., manual or ligature
strangulation, had contributed to Barrett's death.
Thus, the medical
examiner could only be certain as to the rifle wounds, and he
announced that although strangulation could not be ruled out as a
theoretical cause of death, the gunshot wounds were certainly fatal
and that the proper cause of death should be listed as "homicidal
violence."
PROCEDURAL HISTORY
Clayton was indicted in the 104th District Court
of Taylor County, Texas on Dec. 10, 1987, for the capital offense of
murdering Lori Barrett, in the course of committing burglary,
kidnapping, and robbery, on or about Sept. 17, 1987.
Clayton pleaded
not guilty and a jury found him guilty of three counts of capital
murder on Nov. 3, 1988. Following a separate punishment hearing, the
trial court sentenced Clayton to death on Nov. 10, 1988. Clayton's
conviction and sentence was automatically appealed to the Texas
Court of Criminal Appeals, and the court affirmed his conviction and
sentence on Jan. 27, 1993. Clayton's petition for a writ of
certiorari was denied by the United States Supreme Court on Oct. 4,
1993.
On Feb. 4, 1994, Clayton requested an appointment
of counsel for the purpose of filing a state habeas corpus appeal.
The Court of Criminal Appeals denied the motion on Mar. 1, 1994.
Clayton then requested counsel in the United States District Court
for the Northern District of Texas.
On Feb. 25, 1994, the district
court denied federal habeas counsel on the grounds that Clayton had
not exhausted state court remedies by filing an application for writ
of habeas corpus in state court.
Clayton appealed the denial of
counsel to the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals and the Supreme Court.
The Supreme Court remanded the matter to the Fifth Circuit, which
sent the case back to the district court. The district court granted
Clayton's request and appointed counsel to prepare a federal
petition for writ of habeas corpus.
Before filing his federal petition, Clayton
requested expert and investigative assistance on Feb. 3, 1995, and
his request was denied. Clayton appealed to the Fifth Circuit, which
denied the request on June 27, 1995.
Clayton then filed a petition
for a writ of certiorari to the Supreme Court, which was denied on
Feb. 20, 1996. Clayton then filed a federal habeas corpus petition,
which was dismissed on Dec. 15, 1995, for failure to exhaust state
court remedies.
The Court of Criminal Appeals then granted Clayton's
second request for counsel on Dec. 16, 1996. Clayton filed an
application for writ of habeas corpus in state court on Apr. 24,
1997.
The trial court recommended that relief be denied on Dec. 5,
1997. The Court of Criminal Appeals denied relief based on the trial
court's recommendation on Jan. 28, 1998.
On Aug.. 19, 1998, the United States District
Court for the Northern District of Texas appointed counsel for the
filing of a second federal petition for a writ of habeas corpus.
The
habeas petition was filed on Sept. 17, 1998, but the district court
denied relief on Dec. 17, 1998. The district court denied permission
to appeal on Jan. 19, 1999.
Clayton requested permission to appeal
from the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals on Apr. 20, 1999. Permission
was subsequently denied on Oct. 1, 1999.
The Supreme Court denied
Clayton's petition for writ of certiorari on Apr. 3, 2000.
PRIOR CRIMINAL HISTORY
Clayton claimed that he had stolen the rifle that
was used as the murder weapon from a former roommate's home about a
week before the murder. Clayton also bragged that he had broken into
people's houses and that he considered himself a good burglar.
Clayton told acquaintance Andy Vitez that his mind was "criminally
oriented" and that he would never get caught in his actions. He
thought of himself as "very intimidating and violent and aggressive."
He had also charged an "enormous" telephone bill on a phone card
stolen from Andy Vitez. Clayton had confessed to using a credit card
stolen in a burglary. He was found in possession of property taken
from a neighbor's home, as well as property taken from others' homes.
While on a skiing trip, Clayton told several
acquaintances that he could "just go kill a guy . . . because he
didn't like him," referring to an unknown man who was walking by.
Clayton said he would stick an ice pick into the back of the man's
neck and into his brain, and that he would scramble his brain and
turn him into a vegetable. Then Clayton performed a demonstration of
how he would do this and how the man would flop around on the ground
afterward. He said he would hide the man's body and be long gone
before anyone smelled it.
Clayton entered a shuttle bus while on the
skiing trip, saying that he wanted to "hotwire" it. He also stated
that he wanted to break into a motel room and kill everybody in it.
Clayton stated that he admired his father for killing his neighbor's
dog because it barked. He also said that he wanted to be in the army
because it was "a license to kill."
Also while on the ski trip, Clayton told a female
classmate how to poke or pull someone's eyes out and how he could
snap someone's neck. He further told the woman that he was mad at
his girlfriend and would kill her, that he knew the layout of her
house, that he would break into her house, disarm the burglar alarm,
smother her to death, and be gone so that no one would ever know who
did it.
This woman described him as very full of hate, and as being
very frightening. Clayton told her that he wanted to hit someone so
hard that it would crush his or her skull and make a loud noise. The
woman believed that Clayton was not concerned with right and wrong
and that he wanted people to be afraid of him.
Earlier in his life, Clayton was removed from his
home as an alternative to incarceration as a juvenile offender for a
burglary and for carrying a firearm. At the Boles home for children,
he had "worn out his welcome" by the time he was a senior in high
school because of discipline issues.
Clayton had been in trouble at
school for crawling into the windows of girls' rooms at the school.
He had been barred from the school for a year. Clayton had also
stolen from a family who allowed him to stay in their home.
DRUGS AND/OR ALCOHOL
There was no evidence of
drug or alcohol use connected with the murder.
ProDeathPenalty.com
James Clayton was sentenced to die for the
September 17, 1987 abduction/murder of Lori Barrett in Abilene,
Texas. Lori was kidnapped after Clayton broke into her apartment
through her bedroom window. Her body was found 12 days later and she
had been shot in the head, neck and left shoulder. Lori's hands and
ankles were tied with telephone cord and she was wrapped in a
blanket and dumped on the side of a country road.
CCADP Homepage and Pen Pal
Request
Links to: You can sign the petition here;
original trial notes taken by James during his 1988 trial; Institute
of Forensic Sciences Report; FBI Lab Report; Brief on Behalf of
Applicant.
It was a tragic ending to an otherwise glorious
beginning of a wonderfully bright future for Louise Michelle Barrett.
To have had her life taken away was truly a tragedy indeed, but the
tragedy is compounded, mulitplied and made worse by the Abilene
Police Department's inept and shoddy investigative tacticts, the one
time District Attorney's pandering to the public for the votes to
put him as a judge, the theory that "We've no one better at hand so
lets go with him" and ultimately the conviction and call for the
life of a man who couldn't have done this crime yet and the courts
all seem to overlook this simple fact.
Not only is there no evidence, but what little
there is, is very questionable since no one can agree on not only
that, but a basic part of any conviction ; the cause of death.
If no one can say how the victim who was killed,
why isolate the cause of death as alleged in the indictiment as "death
by firearm" ? Not only is this circumstantial but even judges can't
say what the charge is, whether its kidnapping / murder , robbery /
murder or burglary / murder, they just gloss over all that with "he
was found guilty of capital murder," but what is the charge ? Surely
they don't expect a man's life to be given up because they think he
did something, only they aren't sure. First time in prison, never
arrested before now.
JAMES CLAYTON'S PEN-PAL REQUEST:
I've been on Texas Death Row for 10+ years.
Amazing I know but I'm still here fighting. The latest fight has me
wondering how a lower court can deny help the Supreme Court says I'm
entitled to. Its easy to see the why of it all, but I haven't the
luxury of sitting about, deep in thought. The situation is this : My
state habeaus was denied so we filed a Certificate of Appeals with
the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals and they also turned down the
appeal.
The reason we appealed is because I've never been allowed
investigative or forensic help and this is crucial in a habeaus and
some judge just chooses not to give me what the Supreme Court has
declared defendants are allowed. On top of that, the 5th Circuit
Court of Appeals turned it down just because Texas is known to never
allow such help and saw no need to reverse the ruling on the initial
habeaus.
I am looking for and requesting whether I can
solicit help from those in the field of investigation and forensics
? All up and down the appeals process there's been nothing but
stalling and plain old glossing over. There has to be an
investigator found to look into how the police just didn't look into
the case as they should have, plain and simple. I don't know what
more to tell you that the facts don't already say. My lawyer will
confirm that this case is worse than a fabrication its right along
the area of injustice and help is needed, but as is the case with
many of us, we've no money for a competent fight against any death
penalty case. After 10 years of seeing Texas law legally kill my
fellow prisoners, I know that even an innocent man can be killed.
I'm praying not to be listed among the "OOPS WE MADE A MISTAKE"
victims so I'm asking your help for me and my severely overworked
attorney, who you are very much invited to call and speak to. I do
pray something can be done.
Thank you for your time. Peace! Sincerely
Texas Execution
Associated Press
May 25, 2000
In Huntsville, a
former clerical worker convicted of abducting and killing an
elementary school teacher in 1987 was executed by injection Thursday.
It was the state's third execution this week.
James Edward Clayton, 33, was condemned for the
murder of Lori Barrett, 27, who apparently surprised him while he
was robbing her apartment near Abilene Christian University.
Barrett's body was found bound with an electrical cord and wrapped
in a blanket 12 days after she disappeared. She had been shot in the
head, neck and shoulder, and her body had been dumped beside a rural
road.
Before his execution, Clayton, who had maintained
he was innocent, said he would like to follow Christ's example and
``leave with peace in my heart and forgiveness.'' ``There is no
anger in my heart about this entire situation,'' he said.
Clayton, a New York native, was arrested four
days before Barrett's body was discovered. A prosecutor said
witnesses told authorities they saw Clayton driving Barrett's car
after she was reported missing. Her car was found abandoned on the
college campus. Police searched Clayton's home nearby and found
items belonging to Barrett in a trash container and her car
insurance identification card in his residence.
Clayton was among seven inmates who tried to
break out of the Ellis Unit on Thanksgiving night 1998. One inmate
escaped but was shot by guards as he climbed a fence and later was
found dead in a creek not far from the prison. The six others
surrendered.
Claton becomes the 18th condemned inmate to be
put to death this year in Texas and the 217th overall since the
state resumed capital punishment on Dec. 7, 1982. Clayton becomes
the 38th condemned inmate to be put to death this year in the USA
and the 636th overall since America resumed executions on Jan. 17,
1977.
Clayton Executed for 1987 Murder
By Jason
Gibbs -
Abilene Reporter-News
Friday, May 26, 2000
HUNTSVILLE — The convicted
killer of a young Abilene woman offered few words of comfort and
none that admitted his guilt before he died Thursday night. James
Edward Clayton was executed behind the towering, red brick walls of
the Huntsville Unit, fulfilling a sentenced handed down by an
Abilene jury in 1988.
Clayton was convicted for the murder of 27-year-old
Hawley Elementary School teacher Lori Michelle Barrett in 1987. He
was the second Abilene killer to die this month. William Joseph
Kitchens was executed May 9 for the 1986 rape, robbery and murder of
Patricia Leanne Webb.
Four members of Barrett’s family and one family
friend witnessed the execution. “He lived too long and died too easy,”
Joe Insall, Barrett’s stepfather, said after the execution.
Barrett’s mother, Myrna Insall, did not witness the execution, but
attended a news conference after the death sentence had been carried
out. “She was a wonderful person,” the victim’s mother said as she
broke into tears. “This never should have happened to her. This was
terrible.”
Among the family members who witnessed Clayton’s
execution was the victim’s brother, David Barrett. He said he was
there to see that Clayton was put to death to ensure he could not
repeat his crime. David Barrett noted his sister’s killer had tried
to escape once and said he feared Clayton would make the same
attempt again.
Clayton was one of seven death row inmates who
attempted an escape from the Terrell Unit on Thanksgiving 1998.
Shots fired from a watchtower froze all but one of the inmates in
their tracks. Martin Gurule, a Corpus Christi killer, was found dead
in a creek a week later.
“I don’t think it’s painful enough,” the
still-grieving brother said of Clayton’s demise. “I wish the
judicial system was a little quicker. But according to the
Constitution, even murderers have rights. “I don’t forgive him,” he
added.
Before he died, Clayton feasted on a last meal of
three fried chicken breasts, a lettuce and cucumber salad with light
vinegar dressing and a pitcher of ice water. Dressed in black slacks
and a blue shirt, he licked his lips nervously as he lay on the
executioner’s gurney.
A former Abilene Christian University athlete and
Reserve Officers Training Corps member, Clayton’s still-muscular
body was held to the gurney with five restraint straps. He glanced
at the window behind which his lawyer, four friends and a spiritual
adviser stood to witness his death. “I would like to use this moment
as an example for Christ,’’ Clayton said. “I would like to follow
his example and leave with peace in my heart and forgiveness. There
is no anger in my heart about this entire situation.”
Barrett’s
family stood silently as the lethal cocktail began to course through
the veins of their loved one’s murderer. Clayton struggled to take
his last breath before expiring. He was pronounced dead at 6:17
p.m., maintaining his innocence to the end.
During a jailhouse interview Wednesday, Clayton,
who was 33, said he did not commit the crime for which he was
sentenced to die. He said he bore no ill feelings toward those who
he claimed falsely prosecuted him. He said his thoughts the day
before his execution were of his family and friends.
The killer said
he was grateful for their support. “I’m just amazed by the love I’ve
been shown for the past 14 years,” said the convicted murderer. “I
never thought I was worthy of it.”
Clayton had been on death row since November
1988, almost a year after he was arrested for Barrett’s murder. His
execution was repeatedly delayed while state and federal courts
heard his appeals. He was slated to die in 1994, but the U.S.
Supreme Court granted a stay of execution the day before because it
opened a review in a similar case involving another condemned
prisoner.
The court later retracted its stay, but Clayton continued
his appeals, claiming errors that ranged from insufficient evidence
to the judge’s decision not to move the trial despite intense
publicity. All of those appeals were denied. “I spent many nights
thinking what a change of venue would have changed,” Clayton said.
“There is no way I should have been tried in Taylor County.”
In 1995, Congress passed legislation that limits
to one the number of appeals death row inmates may pursue in the
state and federal courts. Where in years past, inmates and their
attorneys raised issues one point at time — filing endless motions
that delayed executions — the new law required all points of appeal
to be included in one filing.
Successive appeals can be raised only
if the defense discovers information previously unavailable to it.
State reforms, also passed in 1995, have further sought to limit
delays in the execution of justice. Condemned prisoners must file
writs within 90 days of their convictions so those issues can be
considered simultaneously with their automatic direct appeals.
On Wednesday, Clayton said he was tying up loose
ends before his execution. “I’ve been giving my property away,” he
said. “I don’t want to leave anything important. It’s like when you
go on vacation and you have the feeling you have forgotten something.
But I can’t figure out what I forgot.”
Clayton Ready to Face Death
By Jason Gibbs -
Abilene Reporter-News
Thursday, May 25, 2000
LIVINGSTON — James
Edward Clayton says his only regret in life is that he once strove
toward a career in the military to defend a government and its laws
that he believes failed him.
During a jailhouse interview Wednesday,
the convicted murderer, former Abilene Christian University student
and member of the Reserve Officers Training Corps at Hardin-Simmons
University maintained his innocence. But he said he is ready to face
the ultimate punishment.
Clayton, sentenced to death for the 1987 slaying
of Hawley fifth-grade teacher Lori Michelle Barrett, is to be
executed this evening. He likened his 13-year journey through the
Texas penal system to a fighting retreat. “It’s been a long road,
like a battle when you are running in retreat,” Clayton said. “You
see so much land to cross and the enemy is still there, at your
heels.”
Barring an unlikely stay from Gov. George W. Bush, Clayton’s
execution will be the 217th carried out in the state since Texas
resumed execution as a form of capital punishment in 1982. He will
be the second Taylor County inmate executed this month. William
Joseph Kitchens was put to death May 9 for the 1986 rape, robbery
and murder of Patricia Leanne Webb.
Calm and well-spoken, Clayton said he made his
peace years ago. “If I die, I die,” he said. “If you are in a
position where you really cannot win, what are you supposed to do?
Hang on, try to stay on until the ride is done.”
Late for school
Barrett was relatively new to Abilene when she
was murdered. She arrived in the city in 1987 after teaching several
years in College Station. She worked a night job at Dillard’s
department store and taught part-time until she caught the attention
of Hawley Elementary School principal Cecil Davis. She was hired
full time at Hawley in September 1987.
Clayton, who had dropped out
of ACU a few months prior to the murder, said he met Barrett at the
Mall of Abilene and invited her to his home for a party. Co-workers
later testified they saw her leaving the Dillard’s parking lot on
the evening of Sept. 17. It was the last time they would see her
alive.
Clayton claims Barrett showed up at his home about 9:30 p.m.
After awhile, Clayton said, he went to bed and left Barrett visiting
with someone he knew only as “Andy.” When he awoke, he said, they
were gone.
Evidence at trial, however, showed that someone
had pried open Barrett’s bathroom window and crawled inside. The
next morning, Clayton said he found Barrett’s keys and took her car
to run some errands. He wrecked it on East North 16th Street and a
passer-by helped him tow the car to a dormitory parking lot on the
ACU campus. The car, which Barrett’s family found four days after
her disappearance, eventually led police to Clayton.
Members of her family have declined to comment on
Clayton’s impending execution, other than to say it will mark the
end of 13 years of pain. A massive manhunt for Barrett was launched.
More than 100 people converged on Abilene to search a 20-mile area
for the schoolteacher.
Barrett’s family hired a private investigator
and eventually consulted three psychics to aid in their search. A
hunter found Barrett’s body in a field northwest of Abilene.
Her
partially clad and decomposing body was spotted north of Interstate
20, just yards from the Tye city limits. The body had been there
several days. She was bound and gagged and wrapped in a blanket, and
had been shot to death with a high-powered rifle.
Inside Clayton’s apartment, police found the
murder weapon, matched by forensic tests to a cartridge case
discovered near Barrett’s body. Other possessions belonging to
Barrett were also in the apartment and in a trash container outside.
Though he claimed he had stolen the rifle from a former roommate,
Clayton was charged with capital murder.
The trial
At trial, jurors heard testimony that Clayton was
extremely agitated in the days prior to Barrett’s disappearance,
upset that a girlfriend was ending a relationship. The ex-soldier,
who often bragged about his killing skills, told a friend that
“killing was the only way he could vent his anger, and it was the
only thing he could do about it.”
Though District Attorney James
Eidson was disqualified from prosecuting the case by a potential
conflict of interest, he said he remembers the facts well. “This
case was a cold, calculating murder,” Eidson said. “This is the type
of individual who is deserving of the death penalty.” The result of
Clayton’s trial, Eidson said, was just.
The seven-man, five-woman jury deliberated about
five hours over two days before finding Clayton guilty on three
counts of capital murder.
Jurors needed about three hours to
sentence him to death by lethal injection. When State District Judge
Billy John Edwards announced the sentence, two jurors as well as the
victim’s mother and sister openly wept. But Clayton did not react.
At no time during nine days of testimony and arguments did Clayton
openly display any emotion.
On Wednesday, he remained calm and soft-spoken
even as he recalled the events of his trial and his impending
execution.
Denying any role in the murder of the teacher, Clayton
said his thoughts are of his family and Barrett’s — and of the
political system he said is to blame for his death. “I have friends
and family trying to understand all this,” he said. “I just hope the
bloodlust of our society will be sated and they will stop executing
people.
“I’m locked up with men who know more about right
and wrong than any politician,” he said. As for the family of the
slain schoolteacher, Clayton said he hopes they will someday realize
he did not commit this heinous crime. “They have been duped,” he
said.
