Virginia Governor Won't Stop Woman's Execution

The first execution of a woman in Virginia in nearly a century remains on track for next week. Gov. Bob McDonnell yesterday rejected the clemency bid of 41-year-old Teresa Lewis, reports the Richmond Times-Dispatch. Her last hope is intervention by the Supreme Court. Lewis plotted with two men to kill her husband and stepson in 2002 for the insurance money, but her defenders (website here) say she's borderline retarded and easily manipulated.

"Having carefully reviewed the petition for clemency, the judicial opinions in this case and other relevant materials, I find no compelling reason to set aside the sentence," wrote McDonnell. "Accordingly, I decline to intervene."
(More Bob McDonnell stories.)