Oklahoma Death Row Inmate Executed For Murders From 2002

An Oklahoma man was executed Thursday, April 4, at 10:20 a.m. for two separate murders in 2002 in Oklahoma City.

Michael DeWayne Smith was put to death by lethal injection for killing Janet Moore and Sharath Pulluru in separate shootings on the same day in 2002.

Related Story: Man Convicted In 2 Murders From 2002 Denied Clemency

Moore was 40 years old and a mother from Oklahoma City. Smith told police he went to the victim's apartment looking for her son, and shot Moore because she wouldn't be quiet.

Pulluru was a 24-year-old store clerk when Smith killed him on the same day at a convenience store where he worked.

Clemency was denied for Smith during a hearing in March. His attorney has argued Smith is intellectually disabled and shouldn't be put to death. He also claims Smith was not in his right mind at the time of the murders.

Smith is only one of 10 percent of death row inmates in the country who have been convicted of multiple killings. He was the first person executed in Oklahoma this year.

Attorney General Gentner Drummond made the following statement Thursday after Smith's execution:

“I pray that today brings some measure of peace for the families of Janet Miller-Moore and Sharath Pulluru. It has been a long and difficult 22 years for their loved ones, and my heart aches over the agony they have endured. I want the people of Oklahoma to know that the victims of Michael Smith were good and decent people who did not deserve their fate. Janet, a loving mother and dedicated hospital staffer, was a rock for her family. She was always willing to lend a hand to anyone in need, an ear to anyone who needed to feel heard, and a kind word to anyone who was struggling. Sharath, a bright young man with a generous spirit, was the first in his family to come to the United States to pursue an education. He was fun to be around, was an inspiration to his family, and had a promising future. Janet and Sharath were murdered simply because they were in the wrong place at the wrong time; that was all. I am grateful that justice has been served.”