A man serving life in jail has been put to death after DNA evidence revealed he was the killer behind the murder of a university student in a 1978 cold case.
Clarence Dixon, 66, became Arizona's first execution in eight years and rejected the notion of his conviction and sentence.
"The Arizona Supreme Court should follow the laws. They denied my appeals and petitions to change the outcome of this trial," he said before being put to death, according AZ Central.
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"I do and will always proclaim innocence. Now, let´s do this s**t."
In his last few words he also gave a creepy shoutout to his victim.
"Maybe I'll see you on the other side Deana. I don't know you and I don't remember you," he said, according to a media representative.
Dixon was put to death by lethal injection at 10.30 am on May 11.
He received his death sentence in 2008 over the slaying of 21-year-old Deana Bowdoin in 1978.
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Lawyers for Dixon rallied to prevent his death in court, arguing it would be unconstitutional to kill the 66-year-old as he was mentally unfit and would not be unable to understand what was happening.
His lawyers claimed he had been diagnosed with paranoid schizophrenia and also suffered from hallucinations, but, despite their best efforts, he was judged competent by the state.
A last-minute injunction to halt his death was also denied by the US Supreme Court.
Deana's sister, Leslie Bowdoin James, released a statement on Arizona's handling of the case, slamming the state for taking so long to find her sister's killer.
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"The last forty-four plus years of reliving Deana’s brutal murder as well as enduring the trial and appellate litigation has been nothing short of horrific for our family," she said, according to The Arizona Republic.
She added: "As victims, the Arizona Constitution guarantees a prompt and final conclusion of this matter. Nothing about this case or my experience in the criminal justice system has been prompt."
Addressing the media after the execution, Ms Bowdoin James read a list of numbers that held importance throughout her life.
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"Today the process has been finalised," she said, as reported by AZ Central.
"Forty-three and 20: the number of hearings and the number of years I have attended since the indictment.
"Thirteen: The number of women that this inmate victimised. One and zero: The number of sisters I had up until, and after, January 7, 1978."
Dixon lived across the road from Bowdoin in 1978 when he sexually assaulted, strangled and stabbed her in her apartment.
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The identity of her killer remained a mystery until 2001, when DNA testing finally linked Dixon to Bowdoin's cold case killing.
Dixon was already in jail at that time for sexual assault in a different case in 1986.
Featured Image Credit: Arizona Department of Correction. Tetra Images / Alamy Stock Photo
