Oklahoma executed a man Thursday for a 1997 killing despite a recommendation from the state's Pardon and Parole Board that his life be spared.
James Coddington, 50, received a lethal injection at the Oklahoma State Penitentiary in McAlester and was pronounced dead at 10:16 a.m.
Coddington was the fifth Oklahoma inmate to be put to death since the state resumed executions last year.
After the first drug, midazolam, was administered, Coddington's breathing became labored and his chest hitched several times.
A doctor on the execution team declared him unconscious at 10:08 a.m., and Coddington could be heard snoring inside the chamber.
Coddington was convicted and sentenced to die for beating 73-year-old Albert Hale to death with a hammer.
Prosecutors say Coddington, then 24, became enraged when Hale refused to give him money to buy cocaine.
During a clemency hearing this month, an emotional Coddington apologized to Hale’s family and said he was a different man today.
But Albert Hale’s son who witnessed the execution, said he didn't believe Coddington was sincerely remorseful.