Execution Report: Gregory Summers

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A jury convicted Summers of capital murder in August 1991 and sentenced him to death. The Texas Court of Criminal Appeals affirmed the conviction and sentence in June 1994. All of his subsequent appeals in state and federal court were denied.

Andrew Flores Cantu, who had a prior burglary record, was also convicted of capital murder and sentenced to death. He was executed on 16 February 1999. Ramon Gonzales was convicted of burglary and sentenced to 20 years in prison. He has been out on parole since 1999. Information on Paul Flores was not available for this report.

"I had nothing to do with this," Summers said in an interview from death row the week before his execution. "They know that ...I am so outraged that a system in a country that's supposed to be civilized can sit back and watch an innocent man be convicted and be sent to the death chamber, and nobody gives a damn," Summers said.

"When I went to trial, all they proved was there were three murders," he said. "But they can't show I did this with Cantu because it never happened."

"My parents were the greatest," Summers said of the couple who adopted him when he was three days old. "I didn't have to worry about not being wanted or a mistake or anything like that."

Summers said he knew Andrew Cantu's brother, who had worked for his father.

Summers' execution was delayed about three hours by final appeals efforts. When the warden asked whether he had a final statement, Summers answered, "no." The lethal injection was then started. He was pronounced dead at 9:16 p.m.

By David Carson. Posted on 6 November 2006.
Sources: Texas Department of Criminal Justice, Texas Attorney General's office, Associated Press, Huntsville Item.