Protesters Rally Against Harris Execution

A handful of activists opposing the death penalty took to the sidewalk in front of the County Courthouse on Tuesday, staging a mellow protest against the impending execution of murderer Robert Alton Harris.

The protest, which organizers described as “street theater,” centered on a black coffin laid gently to rest on the Broadway sidewalk. Eight activists carrying signs or dressed as hooded executioners stood solemnly behind the coffin, responding politely to questions from the lunchtime crowds and from assembled news crews, who outnumbered the protesters.

The protest, which broke up as soon as TV crews left the scene, inspired a few hecklers and brought out two sign-carrying death penalty proponents. But the two camps stayed well apart. There were no arrests.

The 50-minute protest was so orderly that no county marshals or city police were even visible. “This was intended to be what we called a mini-event,” said Steve Karp, a spokesman for the San Diego-based Committee Against the Death Penalty, which organized it.

Protesters plan a daily noontime vigil at the courthouse through Monday, the day before the execution, Karp said.

Harris, 39, is due to be executed Tuesday in what would be the first execution in California in 25 years. He killed two Mira Mesa teen-agers in 1978 and has been on Death Row since he was convicted of murder in 1979.

“The blood shed from those victims, that was blood shed by a madman,” said one of the protesters, Fran Humphrey, 41, of San Diego. Harris’ lawyers do not maintain he is insane but allege he is brain-damaged and unable to control impulses.

“Are we madmen, too?” Humphreys said. Like other protesters, she wore latex gloves spattered with red paint, making her hands look bloody. “This cycle of violence has to end,” she said.

Another protester, Stephanie Pickering, 32, of Coronado, carried a sign that read, “I Oppose the Death Penalty--Don’t Kill for Me.”

“I’m just appalled by the concept of my government deciding who lives and who dies,” she said.

Lena Messerschmidt, 42, of El Cajon seemed to be appalled by the protesters. She stopped a stroll down Broadway to yell at them: “What would happen if one of your family members was murdered? Would you want them to get off scot-free?”

After heckling the group a bit more, she said to reporters: “This makes no sense. As far as I’m concerned, they should make sure Harris is put to death.”

Wearing a cap decorated with an American flag that read, “San Diego Salutes the Troops,” Jim Noel of North Park said he concurred. “Here’s a guy that kills two boys in this very town. Where’s the justice?” he said. Referring to the protesters, he said, “These people should be out here saying, ‘Yes, get rid of him.’ ”

Noel held a two-sided sign. One side read, “Honk to Gas Harris.” The other said, “Honk to Clean Out Death Row.” A red Ford Festiva driven by a young man in a tie-dyed shirt obliged, driving up and down Broadway and honking away.

“There are two sides to the sign,” Noel said. “I’m out here because there are two sides to the issue.”

Nearby stood Edward Tiedeman, 35, of San Diego, who held a sign that said, “Harris Should Die for Murdering 2 Boys.” He said a friend of his had been killed.

“If somebody can be that serious, cause that much pain, society has to do something,” Tiedeman said. “We have a problem of people running around killing each other.”

Among the crowd of lawyers and judges who passed by was Jay Bloom, a San Diego Municipal Court judge who used to be one of the state prosecutors leading the legal effort to execute Harris. “No comment,” he said, smiling. “No comment.”