Executed convict Joseph O'Dell, whose case prompted a media campaign in Italy against the death penalty in the United States, was buried Thursday as an "honorary citizen" of Palermo.
"We don't know if you are innocent of the crime you were executed for - and we don't care," said the Rev. Pietro Sorci at the Roman Catholic funeral Mass. "We are not here to judge you or those who condemned you."About 300 people, including Palermo Mayor Leoluca Orlando, attended the funeral, which was paid for by the city. Orlando walked out of the church beside Lori Urs, the woman O'Dell married eight hours before his execution on July 23.
The gravestone bore an inscription in English and Italian: "Honorary citizen of Palermo killed by Virginia, USA, in a merciless and brutal justice system."
O'Dell was executed for the rape, torture and murder of Helen Schartner in Virginia Beach, Va., in 1985.
Urs said O'Dell's last wish was to be buried in Italy, where death penalty opponents mounted a campaign to try to head off his execution, including appeals from Pope John Paul II and top Italian politicians.
Orlando was among those who met with Virginia Gov. George Allen for a last-minute appeal, and he said a monument would be erected in Palermo in O'Dell's memory.