Roberts Former

Michael Bueke Executed For 1983 Shootings, Murder

On May 13, Michael Bueke was executed by lethal injection 20 years after his conviction and sentencing. He had appealed his sentence to the Ohio Supreme Court and for clemency from Governor Ted Strickland, both of which were denied. He was pronounced dead at the Southern Ohio Correctional facility just before 11 a.m. In 1983, he killed one man and shot two others and was apprehended soon after. He was quickly convicted and sentenced to death.

Michael Bueke the Mad Hitchhiker

In spring of 1983, Michael Bueke was hitchhiking through the state of Ohio. He was picked up by Gregory Wahoff, whom he forced to drive to a rural area with a gun. After turning over his vehicle to Bueke, Wahoff fled on foot and was shot several times. He was paralyzed from the wounds. Two weeks later, Robert Craig was found dead in a ditch, shot in the head. The weapon was found to be the same used to shoot Wahoff. Bueke later got a ride from Bruce Graham, who was also robbed of his car and shot. Death row inmates cost far more to house, as there is a lengthy appeals process to get through before a sentence can be carried out.

Quick conviction

Michael Bueke was quickly convicted of the shootings and the slaying. He needed a car to rob a bank, in order to pay a lawyer to defend him on then pending drug charges, according to the Associated Press. Appeals were lodged by his defense, including testimony that his mental status was altered by brain damage. While awaiting execution for the past 27 years, he converted to Catholicism. He expressed a great deal of remorse for his crimes.

Governor Strickland denies Clemency

According to the Cincinnati Enquirer, Governor Ted Strickland was appealed to for clemency. Strickland had previously been a prison psychologist in the state, and sided with the parole board. The judge that presided over the initial case, Norbert Nadel, has gone on record saying that guilt was never in question and the sentence was long overdue. Michael Bueke was the fifth inmate executed in Ohio this year, the 14th under Strickland’s tenure. Ohio resumed capital punishment in 1999, and Bueke’s is the 38th death sentence to be carried out.

Article resources

Associated Press

http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5h18cDX6PuFXpdEc3JIHpQRFMapvAD9FM1FTG0

Cincinnati Enquirer

http://news.cincinnati.com/article/20100512/NEWS010702/5130314/Beuke+denied+clemency

Journey Home: Fr. Guy Roberts – Former Lutheran Seminarian