HOLDEN, COURT DENY RELIEF FOR MALLETT

POTOSI, Mo. -- Jerome Mallett was scheduled to die by injection at 12:01 a.m. today for the 1985 murder of Missouri State Highway Patrol trooper James Froemsdorf of Perryville.

Missouri Gov. Bob Holden denied a clemency request Tuesday night.

Holden's decision removed the last apparent legal obstacle before Mallett's lethal injection, scheduled for 12:01 a.m. today at the Potosi Correctional Center.

"After a complete review, he found nothing in the case for him to disagree with the death sentence," spokesman Jerry Nachtigal said.

In addition to the clemency request, Mallett's attorneys had filed three final pleadings with the U.S. Supreme Court, seeking a stay and relief from a jury's 1986 death sentence. All three appeals were denied Tuesday.

On Monday, Mallett, 42, maintained he shot Froemsdorf in self-defense during a struggle.

"It was a bad situation for everybody," Mallett said. "I wish I could take back what happened, but I can't. I did what I had to do."

Missouri Attorney General Jay Nixon disputed Mallett version of events. Nixon said Froemsdorf was incapacitated when Mallett shot him "execution style."

"The fact that he executed this trooper is exactly the kind of case why juries should have the option for the death penalty in our state," Nixon said.

Michael Gorla, Mallett's attorney, said Mallett had been hopeful of a stay.

"He seemed to be in very good spirits," Gorla said. "He seemed to be calm and remarkably composed under the circumstances."

Gorla and members of Mallett's family separately met with a member of Holden's legal staff Friday to plea for clemency. Sarah Murray, Mallett's sister, also met with Glen Norton, Holden's chief counsel, on Tuesday.

Gorla said he spoke with Mallett moments after the court rejected his appeals.

"Obviously, I'm sure he's disappointed," Gorla said. "He was very appreciative of what I've done for him. But, of course, he's disappointed like I am."

Widow planned to watch

Through a family member, Sarah Froemsdorf, 49, of Cape Girardeau, the trooper's widow, declined comment. She and her three daughters planned to witness the execution.

Lt. Tim Hull, a patrol spokesman, said a number of troopers would be present at the Potosi Correctional Center, where Missouri carries out executions. Hull said a few who were friends of Froemsdorf would serve as witnesses.

Trooper Froemsdorf was a Cape Girardeau native and Vietnam War veteran. He joined the Highway Patrol in 1975 and was assigned to Troop C, based in St. Louis County. He and his family lived in Perryville.

On March 2, 1985, Froemsdorf stopped Mallett for speeding on northbound Interstate 55 near the Brewer exit. After discovering Mallett was wanted in Texas in connection to a jewelry store robbery and for probation violations, Froemsdorf placed him under arrest.

Because of a childhood injury that deformed his right hand, Mallett was able to slip out of the handcuffs and grab the trooper's .357 Magnum revolver. Mallett shot Froemsdorf four times. One shot struck Froemsdorf in the chest but was stopped by a protective vest. A second grazed his shoulder. Two others struck the right side of his neck and proved fatal.

Froemsdorf was 35. More than 600 people attended his funeral in Cape Girardeau, including 300 law enforcement officers from several states.

A three-day manhunt culminated with Mallett's capture at a motel in Desloge, Mo.

Because of media coverage in Southeast Missouri, Mallett's trial was moved from Perry County to Schuyler County on the Iowa border. That venue choice would play a key role in keeping Mallett alive more than 15 years following his conviction in January 1986.

At the time, Schuyler County had only three black residents. Mallett's attorneys at trial and during the years of appeals that would follow argued that fact denied Mallett, who is black, a fair trial.

Public defender Kenny C. Hulshof represented Mallett at trial. Hulshof later would serve as assistant Cape Girardeau County prosecuting attorney, from 1987-89. Hulshof, now of Columbia, currently represents northeast Missouri in Congress.

Matt Miller, a Hulshof spokesman, said the congressman had no public comment on the planned execution.

Hulshof was on the list to witness the execution, but it was unclear as of 10 p.m. whether or not he would attend.

Hulshof argued Mallett was innocent of first-degree murder because the shooting was in self-defense.

The all-white jury found Mallett guilty and recommended the death sentence.

"It was a no-win situation," Mallett said Monday. "If he had got the gun, he would have killed me. I get the gun and shot him, I get the death penalty. No matter what happens, I'm going to end up losing."

Both the state and federal high courts rejected appeals by Mallett on several occasions. Mallett had previously been scheduled for execution in June 1989, but U.S. Supreme Court Justice Harry Blackmun issued a stay days before it was to take place.

Mallett would be the 51st inmate executed in Missouri since the state resumed carrying out death sentences in 1989.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.