An Arizona prisoner whose execution is coming up isn't asking for a reprieve
A prisoner scheduled to be executed next week in what would be Arizona’s first use of the death penalty in over two years will not ask for a reprieve from his death sentence.
PHOENIX — A prisoner scheduled to be executed next week in what would be Arizona’s first use of the death penalty in over two years will not ask for a reprieve from his death sentence.
Aaron Brian Gunches, 53, is not expected to participate in a hearing Monday before the Arizona Board of Executive Clemency, which will note on the record that he has waived his right to ask for relief.
He is scheduled to be executed by lethal injection on March 19 for his murder conviction in the 2002 shooting death of Ted Price, his girlfriend’s ex-husband, near the Phoenix suburb of Mesa.
Aaron Brian Gunches.Arizona Department of Corrections / APGunches, who isn’t a lawyer but is representing himself, made an unsuccessful bid late last year to skip legal formalities and schedule his execution earlier than authorities were aiming for. His death sentence was “long overdue,” Gunches told Arizona’s highest court, which rejected the request.
In a Feb. 20 filing, Gunches said he didn’t want to be present at Monday’s hearing and noted he made a brief virtual appearance earlier before the board to confirm a clemency waiver he made in 2022.
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