Kevin Christopher Kincy

Kevin Christopher Kincy, a 38-year-old black male, was executed by lethal injection at the Texas State Penitentiary in Huntsville, Texas on March 29, 2006. Kincy was found guilty of the 1993 murder of Jerome Samuel Harville, a 31-year-old black male. Kincy, who was 25-years old when he committed the capital crime, was sentenced to death on November 2, 1995.

In March 1993 Kincy and his cousin, Charlotte Marie Kincy, a 33-year-old black female, made plans to rob Jerome Harville and steal his car and possessions. The plan was for Charlotte, who had been romantically involved with Harville and had been accepting money from him, to seduce Harville in his Jacinto City, Texas home. Kincy would then enter the home and kill Harville.

After Harville was murdered Kincy and Charlotte brought Byron Brown, Kincy's coworker, to Harville’s house. When Brown entered a bedroom he observed a man lying on the floor, realized he was dead, became frightened, and left the house.

On March 26 Harville’s coworkers became concerned because of his absence from work and eventually notified the sheriff's department. A deputy discovered Harville in his home having been fatally shot in the head and stabbed several times. Although there was no sign of forced entry Harville's home had been ransacked and his Honda Accord, among other items, had been stolen. Police uncovered prints in the home consistent with a person wearing gloves.

Terkisha Dawson testified that Kincy explained to her how he surprised Harville in his home and shot him in the head. Dawson said that Charlotte admitted to stabbing Harville several times. Keenan Mosley, another of Kincy's cousins, also testified that Kincy displayed a gun he had stolen from Harville, made a list of pros and cons concerning his chances of getting caught, and mentioned having worn gloves. Mosley also testified that she observed Kincy with a Honda Accord and a large amount of home appliances and equipment.

On April 6 an FBI agent spotted Kincy driving Harville's Honda on Interstate 10 in Texas near the Louisiana border. Police apprehended Kincy in Louisiana after a lengthy high-speed chase. Police linked Kincy to the crime after recovering the murder weapon, a .25-caliber pistol, in the Honda and finding Harville's stolen 9-millimeter Ruger in a pawnshop.

In 1993 Kincy and Charlotte were both charged with capital murder. Kincy had prior convictions for possession of marijuana, theft, delivery of cocaine, burglary of a motor vehicle, and attempted murder. The State agreed to reduce Charlotte's charge to first-degree aggravated robbery for which she was sentenced to 40 years’ imprisonment in exchange for her guilty plea and her promise to testify against Kincy at trial. However, when Charlotte was called as a witness in the penalty phase of the 1995 trial she refused to testify. The Harris County jury nonetheless found Kincy guilty of capital murder, and the court sentenced him to death. On January 21, 1998, the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals affirmed his conviction and sentence. On the day of execution the Supreme Court of the United States denied a stay.

References

* Michelangelo Delfino and Mary E. Day, "Death Penalty USA 2005 -2006", (2008), 241-243.
* "Kincy v. Dretke" (5th Cir. 2004) No. 03-20656.
* "Kincy v. Livingston" (2006) 547 U.S. 1053.

See also

* Capital punishment in Texas
* Capital punishment in the United States