Supreme Court denies appeal of Byrd killer on death row

FILE - This photo of murder defendant John William King, showing some of his tattoos, was entered into evidence Wednesday, Feb. 17, 1999, in Jasper, Texas. King is one of three white men charged with capital murder in the dragging death of James Byrd Jr. (AP Photo/Jasper County District Attorney's Office, POOL) less FILE - This photo of murder defendant John William King, showing some of his tattoos, was entered into evidence Wednesday, Feb. 17, 1999, in Jasper, Texas. King is one of three white men charged with capital ... more Photo: HO Photo: HO Image 1 of / 59 Caption Close Supreme Court denies appeal of Byrd killer on death row 1 / 59 Back to Gallery

The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday denied the appeal of a Jasper man convicted in the 1998 dragging death of James Byrd Jr., clearing the way for a court to set an execution date for John William King.

King, one of three white men convicted of capital murder for the racist lynching, appealed to the nation's highest court in June, arguing that he was denied due process in his 2016 appeal to the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in which he alleged errors in his 1999 trial and conviction.

The 44-year-old Georgia native has been on death row at the Polunsky Unit in Livingston since Feb. 25, 1999. A hearing to set an execution date had not been set as of Monday afternoon, the Jasper County District Attorney's Office said.

King's co-defendants, Shawn Berry and Lawrence Russell Brewer, were found guilty of the hate crime. The Jasper men chained the 49-year-old African-American man by his ankles to the bumper of a pickup and dragged him three miles on an old logging road on the outskirts of Jasper in June 1998.

Berry, 43, is serving a life sentence. Brewer was executed in 2011.

RELATED: King appeals Byrd conviction again, this time citing 'fantasy' claim

The New Orleans-based appeals court ruled that King could appeal only on the claim that his lawyers failed to effectively present his case of actual innocence. In his June 20 Supreme Court appeal, King's attorney Richard Ellis argued that the lower court "leapfrogged to a conclusion" by denying his right to appeal on other claims.

The court should have decided whether a "reasonable jurist" could believe King's claims were debatable, not weigh the actual merits of the claims, according to Ellis.

The California-based attorney did not respond to requests for comment Monday.

King has repeatedly appealed his conviction and sentence, according to court documents, insisting on "the inadequacy of his representation."

In response to King's latest appeal 18 years later, Assistant Texas Attorney General Katherine Hayes wrote that the Supreme Court shouldn't review the case because King "merely disagrees with the result" of the lower court.

Hayes did not respond to requests for comment Monday.

King's case was one of about 200 denied review by the Supreme Court on Monday. According to information from the administrative office of the U.S. Courts, the Supreme Court hears about 100 to 150 of the more than 7,000 cases it is asked to review each year.

Phoebe.Suy@BeaumontEnterprise.com

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