Georgia executes killer Tracy Lee Housel

JACKSON - Convicted killer Tracy Lee Housel was put to death Tuesday night for raping and murdering a suburban Atlanta woman 17 years ago. <br> <br> Before he was given a lethal injection, Housel apologized and told his friends and family, ``Take care of yourselves. May God be with you all.&#39;&#39; <br> <br> Housel, who was born in the British territory of Bermuda, admitted picking up 46-year-old Jean Drew at a truck stop in 1985, then raping her and bashing her head. <br> <br> During his sentencing hearing, Housel also admitted beating a Texas truck driver to death with a hammer and stabbing an Iowa man. <br> <br> The execution drew intense media interest in Great Britain, which abandoned capital punishment 40 years ago. <br> <br> Prime Minister Tony Blair had asked Georgia&#39;s parole board to commute the 43-year-old Housel&#39;s sentence to life in prison. <br> <br> The Law Society, representing lawyers in England and Wales, also wrote to the parole board, and members of the British Parliament signed a motion calling for Housel&#39;s sentence to be commuted. <br> <br> The board turned down Housel&#39;s plea for mercy yesterday. <br> <br> Housel&#39;s lawyers argued his initial trial was unfair and his court-appointed attorney inexperienced. Under his lawyer&#39;s advice, Housel pleaded guilty and his defense at the sentencing trial lasted less than 30 minutes.

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