by Archana Subramaniam by CNB
Roanoke Times Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc. DATE: THURSDAY, January 9, 1992 TAG: 9201090618 SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: B-7 EDITION: METRO SOURCE: DATELINE: RICHMOND LENGTH: Short
DEATH ROW INMATE FILES FINAL APPEAL
Attorneys for death row inmate Herbert Bassette filed appeals in U.S. District Court on Wednesday, claiming new evidence shows someone else committed the 1979 murder for which Bassette was convicted.Bassette, 46, is scheduled to die in the electric chair on Jan. 23. His attorneys also argued on appeal that death by electrocution "denies him the dignity granted to a stray dog put to death in this state."
Three people who also were charged in the the crime testified against Bassette. All were convicted felons and heavy drug users. Bassette, the only Virginia death row inmate convicted solely on the basis of accomplice testimony, claims he was set up by the three.
- Associated Press