DALLAS (AP) – A judge in Dallas has set Dec. 7 as the day a former accountant should be put to death for fatally shooting his two young daughters more than 15 years ago while their mother – his ex-wife – listened helplessly over the phone.
State District Judge Robert Burns signed an order Monday setting the execution for 61-year-old John David Battaglia.
Battaglia avoided execution in March when a federal appeals court halted his scheduled lethal injection so an attorney could be appointed to investigate claims Battaglia may be mentally incompetent for execution.
The 61-year-old Battaglia was convicted of killing his daughters, 9-year-old Faith and 6-year-old Liberty. Authorities said the slayings were revenge for their mother’s complaints to Battaglia’s parole officer that led to a warrant for his arrest.
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