This undated handout photo released Thursday Jan. 26, 2012 by the Georgia Department of Corrects shows convicted murderer Nicholas Cody Tate. Butts County Superior Court Judge Thomas Wilson rejected an appeal Thursday that clears the way for Tate to be executed Tuesday for the 2001 killings of a woman and her 3-year-old daughter. (AP Photo/Georgia Department of Corrections)GREG BLUESTEIN, Associated Press
JACKSON, Ga. – A judge on Tuesday halted the execution of a Georgia man an hour before he was set to die for the 2001 murders of a woman and her 3-year-old daughter, acting after the inmate signaled he would file a new round of appeals.
Butts County Superior Court Judge Thomas Wilson postponed Nicholas Cody Tate’s execution until further notice about 45 minutes before Tate was to be put to death at the state prison in Jackson for the murders of Chrissie Williams and her daughter Katelyn. The order was filed about 45 minutes before he was set to die.
Tate was convicted and sentenced to death in 2005. He waived his right to appeal at a hearing four years later, saying “you caught me red-handed.” Since then, he had refused to challenge his conviction and death sentence through habeas corpus appeals, which could take years to work through the court system.
Tate appeared to have a change of heart as his execution neared. He agreed late Tuesday to file a habeas appeal, forcing the judge to halt the execution. Prison officials notified the media in Jackson minutes after the stay was filed. Tate’s attorneys expect to file more court briefings in the days to come.