Early this morning Oklahoma executed Wanda Jean Allen (41) for killing her lover. She was the first woman put to death in the state since 1903 and the first black woman executed in the United States since the 1950s.
She was pronounced dead shortly after 3 a.m. Irish time - a few minutes after receiving an injection of chemicals at McAlester state prison, about 210 km south-east of Oklahoma City.
The execution came hours after the US Supreme Court and Governor Frank Keating rejected pleas for a 30-day stay from Allen supporters.
These included the civil and human rights activist the Rev Jesse Jackson.
Mr Jackson argued she should be spared because she was borderline mentally retarded.
The final words of Wanda Jean Allen were: "Father forgive them, they know not what they do." Reuters
