Nearly a decade after killing Lola Nixon, 46, in her Texas home during a burglary, Mario Swain, 33, received a lethal injection Thursday at a state prison in Huntsville, Texas.
Described by prosecutors as “a serial killer in training,” Swain bludgeoned Nixon to death with a tire iron two days after Christmas then drove her body to a field where he dumped it according to the Austin Chronicle.
It took a jury just three days to sentence Swain to death.
Though he confessed to having killed Nixon, Swain made several unsuccessful attempts at an appeal. He primary claim was that police had not read him his rights prior to his confession.
Swain initially told police the burglary was committed by friends before authorities were able to link him to the murder, recovering Nixon’s blood on his clothing, her car keys in his possession and his attempt to use Nixon’s credit cards and give a friend of his a piece of her jewelry.
According to media reports from the scene, Swain had no last words before his execution.
No members of the Swain or Nixon families were present for the execution, which took approximately 30 minutes.
According to a 2012 American Values Survey performed by the Public Religion Research Institute, 46 percent of the country favors capital punishment for a murder verdict compared with 47 percent favoring life in prison.
Among those who participated in the September survey, the majority of Democrats, Catholics, and black Americans favored life in prison, whereas the majority of Republicans and whites Americans favored death.
Overall, 61 percent of Americans are in favor of the death penalty while 35 percent oppose it according to a 2011 Gallup survey.
In the U.S., more state executions are performed in Texas than any other state. Swain is the 13th Texas inmate to receive lethal injection this year.
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