Executioner's Song, The - Norman Mailer [429]
There was a bathroom near the visitors' room, and his condition had him going back and forth every five minutes. In addition, he had a near to overwhelming desire to urinate, but nothing was coming out. Nothing. All his insides were fucked up. He had never felt like this in his life. Everything was going crazy.
2
Mike Deamer, who had stayed behind in Salt Lake, was holed up in his office with whatever library he could get together to research the question of how late past sunrise you could still have a lawful execution.
He was getting more and more discouraged to discover he could find nothing. If Deamer was the man to sweat, now was the time, there alone with such an important argument to make, and no materials to base it on. At 6:30 however, a call came from Schwendiman in Denver with Hansen's message. They would not have to rely on a legal opinion if Noall Wootton could get Judge Bullock to rewrite his order.
Wootton had lain in his bed through the night, hating the thought of morning. Felt like there was no reason for him to witness the shooting. Didn't want to. Days ago, he had conferred with Judge Bullock, who interpreted the word "invite" in the statute as an offer that could not be refused. Wootton went to another Judge who said, "You've got a moral obligation. You started it." Still another Judge remarked, "Tell them to go to hell." So, Noall spoke to Warden Smith and said, "I respectfully decline the invitation." Sam Smith replied, "I'd appreciate it very much if you'd be here. The Attorney General says it should be you." That was it.
The hours went by. He didn't sleep, but then he didn't turn on television or radio either. It was only when Brent Bullock, his investigator, arrived in the morning to accompany him to the prison that he heard of Ritter's Stay and decided to go out anyway and see what was happening.
When he popped into Administration he learned that Bob Hansen had gone to Denver. Just as the Warden asked what to do in the event they weren't ready to proceed by 7:49, a call came from Deamer in Salt Lake. They wanted Noall to get the language changed in the Death Warrant.
Judge Bullock, however, had to be brought up to date. He was startled. Had not expected anybody to take an airplane in the middle of the night. Didn't think you could get Judges out of bed for things like that (nor out of a bar, for that matter) but didn't even voice the thought to himself. Now Noall was asking if he were ready to change his order of execution because of the sunrise problem. Judge Bullock didn't have time to ponder it, but felt the old agonizing begin to come back. You don't have to sentence him again, he told himself, that decision has already been made. The only question now is the hour. So he said yes to Wootton-he would change the order, and even remembered how back in October he had set the time for eight in the morning, but by December when they ran past the sixty days, the Warden said, "If we ever do this again, can you make it sunrise? Eight o'clock interferes with breakfast and cleaning up in the prison. It sure would help from the standpoint of administration to have it real early." Judge Bullock had said, "Sure, any time, early or late. Have it at midnight, it's 'all right with me." Sunrise was just a military thing, there wasn't a good hour to execute anybody. You didn't have to be the devoutest Mormon in the world to feel a little uneasy at consigning a man to death when you might have to meet him on the other side.
About ten of seven, some guards came into the visiting room at Maximum Detention and told everybody they would have to say goodbye to Gary. The Warden had sent word to proceed as though the execution was on. So they began to get him ready. Of course, until word came from Denver, nobody would know for sure. It was a funny leave-taking, therefore. Kind of scattered. Evelyn and Dick Gray had already left, and now Ron and Vern went out through the double gate and into a waiting car. Cline Campbell and Bob Moody