Allen execution set for tonight

U.S. District Judge Tim Leonard took the case under advisement after a two-hour hearing, saying it would set a precedent and he did not want to make a snap decision. Several hours later, Leonard ruled "in favor of the state on every legal issue raised" by Allen's attorneys, Oklahoma Attorney General Drew Edmondson said.

"I was pleased with the ruling and particularly pleased that he noted no wrongdoing on the part of Assistant Attorney General Sandy Howard, and that her statements to the (Pardon and Parole) board were based on the sworn testimony of Wanda Jean Allen," Edmondson told The Associated Press.

"No stay has been entered and we will proceed with the execution at 9 o'clock tomorrow (Thursday) night, absent some other development."

Defense attorney Steve Presson has said there would be an immediate appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court if Leonard denied the stay.

Gov. Frank Keating has said he would consider ordering a stay on Thursday, spokesmen for the governor said Wednesday night.

Earlier in the day, Keating promised the Rev. Jesse Jackson and state Rep. Opio Toure, D- Oklahoma City, that he would be fair- minded. Jackson and Toure have called for a moratorium on the death penalty in Oklahoma, a request that Keating has denied.

The governor told Jackson and Toure he would consider a stay based on the narrow issue of whether the Pardon and Parole Board had sufficient information regarding Wanda Jean Allen's education, said Dan Mahoney, Keating's communications director.

Allen was moved from the Mabel Bassett Correctional Center in Oklahoma City around 7 p.m. to the Oklahoma State Penitentiary at McAlester, 120 miles away, said Jerry Massie, a DOC spokesman.

Allen is accused of gunning down her lesbian lover in front of a police station. Last month, the parole board denied her clemency bid on a 3-1 vote, despite claims from her attorneys that she is mentally retarded with an IQ of 69.

Jackson, a longtime death penalty foe, was arrested on a trespassing complaint Wednesday night after trying to cross a barricade set up outside the women's prison. His attorney said he planned to witness Allen's execution if it happened.

Presson told Leonard on Wednesday that Allen was harmed in her clemency bid because Assistant Attorney General Sandy Howard told the board she had a high school diploma and two years of college.

He said that statement was erroneous and undercut the defense argument that she was mentally retarded. He also said one board member, in an interview, cited the false information on Allen's educational background.

Presson also complained the board vote was unfair because only four board members were present. One board member, former Oklahoma County prosecutor Patrick Morgan, withdrew from the case.

Howard stipulated at Wednesday's hearing that her statement about Allen's educational background was in error and was based on Allen's testimony in the penalty phase of her trial. She said there was other evidence she presented to show she was mentally competent, however.

Leonard told Presson that to rule in his favor would be precedent setting. Presson wanted the judge to require "minimal standards" at clemency board hearings.

"You're asking for some very unusual relief in this case," the judge said. He repeatedly said his court would not make a determination on the merits of Allen's clemency appeal.

Several times, Leonard cautioned Presson against accusing the assistant attorney general of "false" misrepresentations before the board, since Howard's comments were based on Allen's testimony.

Presson said the attorney general's office should have known the Allen testimony was false.

Howard called Presson's charge of deception ludicrous, saying it was the only information she had at the time of her arguments before the board.

Allen dropped out of high school at age 15, her defenders say.

In her pleading, Howard argued that Allen should not get a stay and thus benefit from "her own perjured testimony."

"The fact that she had the wherewithal to concoct a lie about her education does not support her claim of mental retardation,"

she said.

The Pardon and Parole Board voted 3-1 to deny clemency for Allen.

Chairwoman Susan Bussey cast the single "yes" vote, while board members Currie Ballard, Flint Breckinridge and Stephanie Chappelle, voted "no."

Presson questioned Breckinridge's participation, since his wife's mother was a murder victim.

Allen was condemned for fatally shooting Gloria Leathers outside The Village police station in 1988.

At the time of Leathers' death, Allen was on probation after serving prison time for the 1981 manslaughter of Detra Pettus.

Allen shot Pettus after an argument with Pettus' boyfriend.

Of the eight inmates scheduled to die in the next four weeks, Allen would be the second unless a stay is granted.

Eddie Trice, who was convicted of killing 84-year-old Ernestine Jones in 1987, was put to death Tuesday night.