Death penalty foes support Lewis

For those fighting Teresa Lewis’ execution, her death represents more than the loss of one life.

“I don’t think the world will be a safer place on Sept. 24, I don’t think it will be a better place and in fact her detention block of Fluvanna Correctional Facility will be a little darker,” said the Rev. Lynn Litchfield, who was Lewis’ minister in prison from 2003-09.

Lewis is set to be executed Sept. 23 for masterminding the 2002 murders of her stepson and husband.

She will be the first woman executed in the U.S. since 2005 and the first in Virginia since 1912.
Lewis was convicted of hiring two men to kill her husband, Julian Lewis, and her stepson, Charles J. Lewis,  to collect insurance money.

They were gunned down in their Pittsylvania County trailer on Oct. 30, 2002.

Rodney Fuller and Matthew Shallenberger each were given life sentences for their roles in the shooting. Authorities believed — and still do — that Teresa Lewis was the mastermind who promised the gunmen sex and a chunk of the proceeds from her husband’s estate and stepson’s $250,000 life insurance policy.

Shallenberger committed suicide in 2006 while serving his sentence at Wallens Ridge State Prison.

Despite the nature of her crimes, individuals and organizations across the county have lined up to protest her execution. Some of the more famous ones include author John Grisham and human rights group Amnesty International.

Opponents argue several points, including her limited mental capacity and strong Christian faith, and debate over her exact role in the crimes.

Preceding her trial, Pittsylvania Circuit Court Judge Charles J. Strauss ordered Lewis to undergo a mental competency evaluation, the results of which are contested.

According to court documents, Lewis had a full scale IQ of 72, a verbal IQ of 70 and a performance IQ of 79. These results place her close to mental retardation and out of contention to be executed, according to the U.S. Supreme Court’s 2002 ruling in Adkins v. Virginia, which outlawed executing the mentally retarded.

“What really stands out is compared to other criminals, this woman has the mental capacity of a 12- to 14-year-old,” said John Whitehead, president of The Rutherford Institute, a civil rights advocacy group in Charlottesville.

Despite the low IQ scores, the examiner pointed out that Lewis completed high school as well as a year of college and concluded that she was competent to stand trial and enter plea agreements, according to court documents.

Even with that, there’s a big difference between being able to stand trial and plotting a murder-for-hire scheme, said Steve Northup, a member of the board of directors of Virginians for Alternatives to the Death Penalty.

“She was no more capable of planning this than my 10-year-old grandson,” he said.

Lewis’ role in the murders also is a point of contention for protesters.

In a letter written before his suicide in 2006, Shallenberger admitted that it was he, not Lewis, who planned the crimes.

Shallenberger, who had an IQ of 113, explained that he used Lewis to obtain seed money to start a drug dealing venture in New York City. She was, as he boasts, “exactly what I was looking for.”

Pittsylvania County Commonwealth’s Attorney David Grimes dismisses speculation that Shallenberger was in control of the murders. He explained that, at 22, Shallenberger liked to boast and brag, but was not a seasoned killer.

“He didn’t know what he was doing,” he said. “These were the two guys who showed up with shotguns loaded with birdshot, which is the worst thing to use if you’re trying to kill someone.”

As for Lewis’ Faith, it’s been a source of hope, said Litchfield, her former minister.

“In spite of what people may think, she’s sweet, caring, optimistic and has tried to become a different person than she was during the crimes,” she said.

In a letter she wrote to Gov. Bob McDonnell, Litchfield discussed Lewis being a comfort to her block mates, singing gospel hymns and offering encouraging words to those around her. She also explained that Lewis’ Bible had fallen apart due to overuse.

Litchfield said she would regard the execution not only as a tragedy for herself, but for the women Lewis helped in prison.

“It would be my hope that we can come to a place where we can see people as more than just the worst thing they’ve ever done.”