Wilson Denies Clemency Bid for Siripongs

Gov. Pete Wilson on Friday denied a clemency request by convicted double-murderer Jaturun “Jay” Siripongs, dashing what was considered his best hope of avoiding execution Tuesday at San Quentin prison.

In a 12-page decision, Wilson said there was no reason compelling enough to spare the life of the former Buddhist monk, who was convicted of murdering a Garden Grove store owner and a clerk during a 1981 robbery.

“Mr. Siripongs’ remorse is infrequent, his callous crimes unmitigated, his justifications nonexistent,” Wilson wrote. Barring last-minute appeals, Siripongs is scheduled to die by lethal injection at 12:01 a.m. Tuesday.

A 43-year-old Thai immigrant who has been on death row since 1983, Siripongs received support from several unlikely sources on his clemency request. Among those who wrote letters to Wilson were a former San Quentin warden, the husband of one of the victims, and two former jurors who originally recommended the death penalty.

They said Siripongs’ sentence should be reduced to life in prison in part because of his exemplary prison record. Family members and friends also said Siripongs’ difficult childhood in Thailand should have been taken into consideration by the governor.

The Thai government urged Wilson to spare Siripongs’ life on humanitarian grounds.

But the governor refused, explaining: “As eloquent as the plea for clemency is, the murders are too brutal.” He said granting clemency when an inmate’s right to due process is not contested would “set a precedent that would require that clemency be granted for virtually every death sentence.”

Prosecutors, reflecting on the 15 years the case has wound its way through the courts, hailed Wilson’s decision. “I will just be relieved when this is over and hope to see justice carried out after all this time,” said Deputy Atty. Gen. Laura Halgren.

Appeals can be filed any time before the execution hour, but Halgren said none are likely to be seriously considered by the courts. “It looks like it’s going to go forward,” she said.

Siripongs’ attorney, Linda Schilling, was not available for comment. Earlier in the week, she declined to say whether she planned to file another appeal if the clemency request was denied.

Schilling had argued in a series of appeals filed in various state and federal courts that Siripongs did not receive an adequate defense during the original trial in 1983. She said Siripongs admitted participating in the robbery, but that an accomplice murdered the victims.

Every court that considered the case affirmed the guilty verdict and death penalty.

The killings occurred at the Pantai Market, a food and jewelry store where Siripongs once worked. Police said he strangled to death his former employer, Packovan Wattanaporn, and stabbed the clerk, Quach Nguyen, several times with a kitchen knife.

Siripongs was arrested two days later while trying to purchase a television set with Wattanaporn’s credit card. Police later traced as much as $50,000 of Wattanaporn’s jewelry to Siripongs.