Clifford Phillips

Outcome

Clifford Phillips was executed by lethal injection in Texas on December 15, 1993.

Timeline

• December 15, 1993 — Clifford Phillips was executed by lethal injection in Texas.
• January 12, 1982 — Clifford Phillips entered the fourth-floor office of Alley Theatre director Iris Siff and demanded money.
• 1970 — Clifford Phillips killed his 3-year-old son in New York State by forcing water down the child's throat.
• 1982 — Clifford Phillips was convicted in the murder of Iris Siff at the Alley Theater.
• Dec. 16, 1993 — Clifford Phillips was executed by injection early that day after the Supreme Court refused to block the execution.
• Supreme Court refusal (date not specified) — The Supreme Court refused to block the execution.

Background

Clifford Phillips was 58 at the time of execution, with an age listed as 58 (47). His education level was 7th grade or less.

Clifford Phillips had served seven years in prison in New York State for killing his 3-year-old son in 1970 by forcing water down the child's throat. The child's body was found in a suitcase. He was also accused of beating his daughter into a vegetative state.

Clifford Phillips previously worked as a security guard at the theater. He had been dismissed as a guard a few weeks earlier for sleeping on the job.

His lawyers argued that he was a victim of racial discrimination. The jury was all-white and the victim was white.

Joseph Siff, the son of Iris Siff, said: "Enough is enough is enough," and "This man has had three strikes. As far as I'm concerned he's given up his rights to the potential for rehabilitation by his own actions."

The offence

Clifford Phillips entered the fourth-floor office of Alley Theatre director Iris Siff on January 12, 1982 and demanded money. After a struggle, he strangled Siff, who was 58, with a telephone cord. He then fled with her television, fur coat, purse, jewelry and vehicle.

Investigation

The record described that Mrs. Siff was working late on a government grant application when she was strangled with a telephone cord.

Trial

Clifford Phillips was convicted in the 1982 murder of Iris Siff at the Alley Theater.

During the trial, Clifford Phillips claimed he killed Siff in self-defense after she attacked him.

Sentencing

The record stated that Clifford Phillips was executed by injection early on December 16, 1993, after the Supreme Court refused to block the execution.

It also stated that the execution was the 71st execution in Texas since the state resumed use of the death penalty in 1982.

Appeals

The record stated that the Supreme Court refused to block the execution.

Aftermath

Clifford Phillips gave a rambling final statement that lasted nearly five minutes. In it he expressed love for his wife, gave thanks to Allah and expressed remorse for the slaying, and stated:

I want to express my feelings regarding the mishap of the deceased Mrs. Iris Siff. That was a very unfortunate incident and only God knows why it was an unintentional situation that took place. I want to express my remorse to the family and the discomfort and pain I caused in their lives. Only God will determine if I am truly guilty or innocent of being the type of person I have been drawn up to be by the press and media. I have given my wife the power and energy to be a disciple of Islam. I rescued her from a wretched life in Ireland. I thank Allah for sending her to me. Certainly murder cannot be an instrument of Allah. My wife is very devoted.

Other details

The record identified the offense as murder of the theater's director during a holdup. It also stated that the execution was the 71st execution in Texas since the state resumed use of the death penalty in 1982, and that it was nearly one-third of the executions in the United States since the Supreme Court in 1976 allowed capital punishment to resume.