Ep13 – MURDER x2: The Taxicab Murders
The Commutation of Dwight J. Loving’s Death Sentence
Dwight J. Loving was a born in Rochester, New York. The youngest of eight children. His mother and father had a volatile relationship and the Department of Social Services spent a significant amount of time at the Loving household.
Dwight was raised mostly by the streets, having gotten into fights and was even shot at when he was young. He had discipline issues, so his mother put him in boxing. He boxed from ages 10-15 (give or take a year) and he was a very good boxer. But when he became a teenager, he met a girl and everything else went down the drain.
In 1986, when Dwight was 18, he joined the Army. His first duty station was Fort Hood. Upon arrival, he was having non-stop issues, he got into a fight, he failed an urinalysis (marijuana) and started being late to work. His leadership was sick and tired of it and was getting ready to kick him out of the military. But his supervisor asked that they give him one more shot. And for a few months he did great! Until September 1988, when he met Nadia Pessima Simmons, an Italian immigrant, who left her husband in New York and moved to Killeen, Texas. She worked as a waitress at a top-less bar that was near the military base.
Dwight fell hard. So much so that he often told her that he would die for her. That Christmas season, Dwight would feel overwhelmed by the prospect of not being able to give Nadia the gifts he thought she deserved. So he took steps that ultimately landed him on military death row.
Dig in with me, as we navigate Dwight’s crimes, the proceeding court-martial, all of the appellate decisions, including a review by the U.S. Supreme Court, and ultimately the President’s authority to commute military sentences.
Young Dwight J. Loving.
Image available here.
Dwight J. Loving
Image available here.
Dwight J. Loving’s Statement to Police.
Image snippet from Democrat & Chronicle, 23 Apr 89
Dwight J. Loving’s Statement to Police
Image snippet from Democrat & Chronicle, 23 Apr 89
Dwight J. Loving’s Statement to Police
Image snippet from Democrat & Chronicle, 23 Apr 89
Dwight J. Loving’s Statement to Police
Image snippet from Democrat & Chronicle, 23 Apr 89
Dwight J. Loving’s Statement to Police
Image snippet from Democrat & Chronicle, 23 Apr 89
Resources: Episode 13
- https://files.deathpenaltyinfo.org/legacy/files/pdf/Article-71-5-30-03.pdf (request for commutation for the President)
- https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1994-07-12-mn-14806-story.html
- https://militaryjusticeforall.com/tag/christopher-fay/
- https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-4130100/Soldier-military-death-row-spared-President-Obama.html
- https://www.lifezette.com/2017/01/heartbreaking-impact-of-obama-commutation/
- https://murderpedia.org/male.L/l/loving-dwight.htm (Read the Supreme Court Opinion Here)
- https://murderpedia.org/male.L/images/loving_dwight/03-8007.pdf
- 41 MJ 213
- https://www.upi.com/Archives/1988/12/16/Army-charges-soldier-in-cabbie-death/2510598251600/ -news article
- http://www.caaflog.com/wp-content/uploads/Loving-cert-opp.pdf
- https://scholarlycommons.law.wlu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1506&context=wlulr
- https://law.justia.com/cases/federal/appellate-courts/caaf/06-8006-AR/06-8006-AR-2006-09-29.html
- https://www.chron.com/news/houston-texas/texas/article/Ex-soldier-from-Texas-gets-new-life-from-Obama-10863376.php#photo-12205812
- Mills, Steve, Democrat & Chronicle, “Obsessive love led to 2 killings.” 23 April 1989. Democrat & Cronicle_23Apr89 / Democrat & Cronicle_23Apr89 – pg 2
- Loving – Supreme Crt – Gov’t opposing brief
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