Steny executed for strangling his mother in Texas
The US state of Texas on Wednesday executed a 60-year-old man convicted of killing his mother, despite pleas from his lawyers for clemency on the grounds that he suffered from mental disabilities.
Tracy Petty, 61, received a lethal injection in Huntsville Prison in the southern United States.
His death was announced at 18:39 pm Wednesday (00:39 GMT Thursday).
He was sentenced to death in 2004 for strangling his 62-year-old mother a year earlier.
At the time, Betty had recently been released from prison after serving prison sentences for theft and violence, and had resided at his mother's house despite their "conflicting relationship", according to court documents.
When she asked him to leave, he beat and strangled her and hid her body.
As his execution date approached, his lawyers filed a final appeal to try to save him, arguing that he suffers from mental disabilities.
The US Supreme Court has ruled unconstitutional the execution of convicts who are unable to understand their sentence.
Last month, two doctors met with him but said they could not come to a conclusive conclusion because the prison authorities refused to untie his handcuffs.
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