Guard's killer is executed

Shuler was denied clemency in case

COLUMBIA — A man who killed an armored car guard 10 years ago was executed Friday by lethal injection. Calvin Alphonso Shuler, 40, was declared dead at 6:17 p.m. He made no final statement.

Shuler was armed with a handgun and assault rifle when he ordered two guards out of an armored van that was stopped outside a Harleyville bank in 1997.

Shuler, a former co-worker of the guards, exchanged gunfire with the men before driving off in the van with James "J.B." Brooks, the third guard who was locked in the back.

Brooks, 77, and Shuler also exchanged gunfire. Shuler was wounded in the neck before he got into another vehicle and fled.

Authorities later found Brooks' body in the van, which was abandoned along a dirt road.

Corrections Department officials said earlier Friday that Shuler was served a last meal of a T-bone steak, well-done with A-1 Steak sauce, baked potato, french fries, grape drink and chocolate cake.

Three members of Brooks' family were expected to watch Shuler die.

Shuler's request for clemency was denied Friday by Gov. Mark Sanford. His attorneys argued to the South Carolina Supreme Court that lethal injection was cruel and unusual punishment, but on Wednesday the high court rejected the request to stop the execution, according to Lisa Kimbrough, a Columbia attorney who has worked on Shuler's case.