2002-01-31

Hafdahl Executed for 1985 Slaying

By Dan Bell - The Huntsville Item Online

January 31, 2002

A convicted cop killer, executed Thursday night at the Huntsville "Walls" Unit, took his last breath swearing he acted in self-defense for the shooting death of an Amarillo police officer.

Dallas County native Randall Hafdahl, 48, was put to death for the Nov. 11, 1985, slaying of 20-year law enforcement officer James Mitchell, 43, a husband and father of three. Hafdahl was the fourth inmate executed by Texas this year.

At 6:02 p.m. Thursday, Hafdahl was led from his holding cell and strapped to a stainless steel gurney. The execution was delayed until the attending physician was able to locate a suitable vein to insert the needle from which the lethal solution of drugs would flow. Hafdahl chose to ignore the victim's family and friends.

Instead, he opted to spend his last minutes focusing on those closest to him.

"All I want to say, I love you," Hafdahl said, tearing up while looking at his daughter, Colleen Shepherd.

"Approximately 28 years ago, I remember looking down at a bassinet. I saw an angel. I am looking at her right now. I love you Colleen." With his face turning a bright crimson color, Hafdahl continued in a loud voice. "Let's get going. The road goes on forever and the party never ends," he said, referring to a song by Texas musician Robert Earl Keen.

"Let's rock and roll," he thundered into the microphone dangling just above his head.

"Let's go Warden. Me and you, all of us. "Remember Wet Willie," said Hafdahl, possibly referring to the Southern rock band of the same name.

"Keep on smiling, keep smiling. I love you.

"It's on the way, I can feel it," Hafdahl said of the lethal drugs entering his body.

"It's OK baby, we have a party to go to." Hafdahl's eyes began to close and he seemed to snore.

He then took about six deep breaths and closed his eyes. Hafdahl was pronounced dead at 6:48 p.m.

According to court testimony, Hafdahl was driving drunk and on drugs on the night of the murder, and he was accompanied by two men, Shawn Terry and Daniel Helgren.

Hafdahl lost control of his vehicle, crashing through a wood fence before coming to rest in the backyard of a private residence.

Mitchell, who was off-duty, was still dressed in his police uniform when he stopped his personal vehicle at the accident scene to offer assistance. Seeing the approaching officer, Hafdahl, with a loaded 9 mm pistol hidden beneath his jacket, attempted to flee through a locked gate. The officer drew his gun and identified himself to Hafdahl as a member of the local police department.

When Mitchell was about six feet from the suspect, Hafdahl turned and fired his pistol four times. Two of the shots hit Mitchell in the heart and lung area, killing him instantly.

In a Wednesday death row interview, Hafdahl said the incident was "a tragic incident."

"I wish it would have never happened but the fault lies in both of us," Hafdahl said. "If the cop had done his job right this (killing) would have never happened."

After Thursday's execution, the husband of Mitchell's daughter, Dean Clapper, read from a prepared statement.

"Tonight's execution can not begin to erase the years of heartache, grief and emotional loss that Hafdahl's actions have caused our family," Clapper said. "Never to be regained is the innocence of two children, the loss of childhood memories or recover the loss of a loving husband and father. In conclusion, our family has stood together facing the most evil of individuals. Tonight, we have finally obtained peace."

Randall Wayne Hafdahl Sr. executed

A jury convicted Hafdahl of capital murder in April 1986 and sentenced him to death. The Texas Court of Criminal Appeals affirmed his conviction and sentence in June 1990.

He was originally scheduled to be executed in July 1995, but received a stay. Four the next 4½ years, Hafdahl won various motions to keep his case open. In August 2000, the U.S. Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals agreed to hear his case. After briefing and oral argument, the Fifth Circuit denied his appeal in May 2001. Hafdahl did not win any proceedings in state or federal court after that.

Daniel Helgran received a sentence of one year's probation for failure to stop and render aid. After Hafdahl's trial, Dr. Ralph Erdmann pleaded guilty to perjury and tampering with government records in other cases he testified in.

In an interview on death row, Hafdahl retold his account of the shooting. "I believed him to be a driver who was coming at me angry because I hit him with my car," he said. In another interview, he said,"I started to turn around, and I saw someone standing at the other end of the fence, but I couldn't hardly see him. ... There was a gun, I could see that real clear." Mitchell didn't say anything, Hafdahl said. "Now, I been shaken down by police officers plenty of times in my life, and they ever do something like that, they always tell me, 'Put your hands on your head. Get on the ground.' - something," Hafdahl said. "They don't just run up on you. And when he ran up on me ... I just spun around and clipped him down. It was just Pow! Pow! Pow! Pow! And as he's falling, and he's going to the ground, I realized right then who he was."

Hafdahl said he felt remorse for the killing since the night it happened. "I wish I could give the Mitchells back what they lost. I wish I could give Mitchell back what he lost, but I can't," he said.

At his execution, Hafdahl released a written last statement that criticized the law enforcement and prosecution officials involved in his case, by name. He accused them of planting evidence and lying at his trial in order to secure his conviction.

The next part of his statement read,

"And to the Mitchell family: I truely am sorry for the tragedy that took place on Nov 11, 85. Thats all I can give you. Thats all I will give you. Because today your making my family and loved ones a victim just as you have cried to the world you were in this tragedy. I did not deliberately shoot James Mitchell. I had no premeditation in my thoughts when I spun around and fired, no matter how many fantasy motives Clayton and Sherrod fabricated. So today my family becomes a victim. You know, the truth sets you free, and the truth is, if your loved one had acted with any professionalism at all, he would be alive today! And thats all I got to say about it."

Hafdahl also made an oral last statement, in which he expressed affection for his daughter. After telling her and other friends that he loved them, he lifted his head from the death chamber gurney and shouted into the microphone, "The road goes on forever and the party never ends." He screamed, his faced turning crimson.

"Rock 'n Roll!" he shouted.

After this, he regained his composure and the lethal injection was begun. "It's on the way. I can feel it. Take me home. We got a party to go to," Hafdahl said. His voice rose again and he shouted "Remember Wet Willie. Keep on smiling. Keep on smiling." His eyes closed and he began to snore. He took about eight breaths and then stopped. Eleven minutes later, he was pronounced dead at 6:48 p.m.