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A death row inmate set to be executed today (February 5) has pleaded his innocence despite being convicted of the 2011 murder of pastor Clint Dobson, saying he deserves a 'second chance'.
Steven Lawayne Nelson was handed the death penalty for killing of the 28-year-old during a robbery gone wrong - having acknowledged that he had shown up to North Pointe Baptist Church, in Arlington - a city between Fort Worth and Dallas, Texas.
The 37-year-old has requested permission to take a lie detector in a bid to prove that he didn't carry out the heinous crime, but that he attended on the day to serve as a lookout for his accomplices as they entered to steal items from the church.
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However, his conviction was based on the grounds that no one else was there at the time of the incident, other than 69-year-old church secretary Judy Elliot who was beaten mercilessly.
Prosecutors stressed to the jury that Nelson acted alone, as they called him a 'predator', 'killer' and 'terrorist' who along with Reverend Dobson's life, took credit cards and a car.
While Nelson testified in his own defense, claiming that when he went into the church he saw Dobson and Elliot's bodies on the floor, before stepping around them and stealing a laptop, adding that they were breathing at that point.
Tragically, the young pastor was suffocated to death - with Nelson being convicted of his murder 18 months later.
Nelson's entire defense was based around the claims that he carried out the robbery with two other accomplices, with their being no fingerprint or DNA evidence found on the murder weapon, the plastic bag - suggesting there is not enough evidence to convict Nelson of the murder.
However, the two men Nelson blamed for the crime had alibis supported by phone records.
Speaking to News Nation, in the days before his execution date, he gave a bold seven-word admission
"I'm not the monster they say I am," he told the outlet.
When asked what he would say to Elliot, he replied: "I will tell you that I'd like to apologize for my actions in the role that I played - even though I wasn't the person who assaulted her. It still hurts to this day that I couldn't do nothing at the time, you know?"
Nelson went on to seemingly lecture North Pointe Baptist Church.
He continued: "I keep thinking 'what if that was one of my family members?', and I wrote a letter to them but the church denied the letter - that really hurt me, you know? Your organization of Christ, there's always redemption and a second chance.
"I just want to say that this will be my last interview because my execution day is next Wednesday, and people do deserve second chances.
"I'm not a lost cause, I'm not beyond help - I'm not broken. My foundation might have been cracked 13 years ago, but my foundation is whole now. I'm not the monster they say that I am."
Joe Yates