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What if your friend was set to die in a week and all you could do is say goodbye? Knowing someone on death row is pretty much like that. You know that person is going to die, but you can't do anything about it.
Tricia Schwennesen found something she could do for her friend, Jonathan Moore, before he was executed. Schwennesen, the deputy metro editor for the San Antonio Express-News, wrote an article for the newspaper from a first-person point of view. She wanted readers to see the Jonathan that was not brought out in the court hearings. It was something that had not been done before, Schwennesen said.
For the first time since Moore's execution, Schwennesen spoke to a group about Moore and the article she wrote. At the Society of Professional Journalists' meeting Feb. 13, Schwennesen went into detail about her friend whom she had met while at this college.
Schwennesen and Moore attended this college in 1994. They were normal college students, they ate lunch at Main Street Pizza and hung out at Hog Wild between classes. Schwennesen even mentioned their experimental drug use and their love for live music in the article published Jan. 14.
Moore was convicted of killing Officer Fabian Dominguez on the morning of Jan. 15, 1995. His Texas Department of Corrections offender information card states: "Moore and two co-defendants had earlier burglarized the home of William Braden ... and returned to steal more items when Officer Dominguez spotted the three in the driveway and tried to stop them by pulling his weapon and ordering them out of the car. As Dominguez approached the car, Moore brushed his gun away and shot him in the face with a pistol he had pulled as the officer approached. Moore then grabbed the officer's pistol … and shot Dominguez three more times at a close range as he lay on the ground." The card also states Moore gave a full confession upon arrest.
Schwennesen spoke with Moore six days before his execution. "I wanted to see if I could have a conversation to put him at ease. How do you count down the days and not have the freedom to say goodbye to the people you want to say goodbye to? There was no doubt that he did a horrible thing. There has to be some price to pay for killing someone," she said at the SPJ meeting.
Before interviewing Moore, whom she had not spoken to in 12 years, Schwennesen went through old journals and scrapbooks to remember what life was like in 1995. "I did not want to cloud my memory of him: I did not talk to Jen," Schwennesen said, referring to Dominguez's widow, Jennifer Morgan.
Schwennesen said that interviewing Moore was like catching up. They spent 45 minutes talking about friends, her job and the places they used to hang out. "It wasn't until we were running out of time, I quickly tried to steer the conversation to more of an interview. 'I'll tell you whatever you want to know,' he said," Schwennesen recalled.
In her article, she wrote about asking Moore if he was the same person she knew back in 1994. He responded "yes" and she asked, "Is that the same you from that night?" and again Moore replied "yes."
Schwennesen had to conduct her interview at the prison through glass and by phone. "I found myself very sad and overwhelmed, frustrated by security and not being able to touch. Talk on the phone is so impersonal. It's difficult to have conversation with glass."
She also talked about her hesitancy in taking notes during the interview because it would make Moore uncomfortable. Instead, she opted to tape record their session.
Schwennesen spent two days on intense writing to finish her article.
She said she wanted it to be an honest and genuine story so that readers could see the person she knew.
"I knew I would get some response that was negative. I wanted people to think more about people on death row and how you find yourself in this position," Schwennesen said. "One single choice that could have been different could have led him in a completely different path."
She talked about her reluctance to speak with Morgan but eventually did meet with the slain officer's widow. "She is a wonderfully nice person who has come to terms with what has happened. She was conflicted about execution but felt obligated to see things through. She didn't want to miss anything should he say anything. She had not gotten an apology, wanted to see that he was sorry."
Morgan did, in fact, attend the execution, while Schwennesen opted not to attend.
In his last statement, Moore said, "Jennifer, where are you at? I'm sorry, I did not know the man but for a few seconds before I shot him. It was done out of fear, stupidity and immaturity. It wasn't until I got locked up and saw the newspaper, I saw his face and his smile and I knew he was a good man. I am sorry for all your family and my disrespect, he deserved better."
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