Taylor's own sister tipped off police in June 1989 after 11-year-old Charla King was found raped and strangled to death in Washington Terrace, Utah.

[1] Taylor gave up appealing his sentence after his request for retrial was rejected by the Utah Supreme Court, though he continued to maintain his innocence.

[5] On January 26, 1996, the day of Taylor's execution, legislation was introduced in the Utah House of Representatives to eliminate the firing squad.

I've come to learn that the real villain was my mother.At around 3:20 p.m. on June 23, 1989, Sherron King returned from work to her apartment in Washington Terrace, Utah to find the body of her daughter Charla in the bedroom with a nightgown wrapped around her head and panties stuffed in her mouth.

[9][11] On June 25, a tipster, who was later revealed to be Taylor's sister Laurie Galli,[7] contacted Washington Terrace Police officer Marcia Gathercole with information connected to the murder.

[11] Taylor's fingerprints were found on a telephone in the King residence and matched to records provided by authorities in Fort Lauderdale.

Taylor testified on his own behalf that he only entered the apartment in the act of burglary while no one was home, leaving his fingerprints on the phone when he found money underneath it.

Weber County deputy attorney William Daines stated that Taylor previously denied being in the apartment and that two witnesses placed him at the scene at the time of the crime.

[11][14] Prison inmate Mike Gallegos testified that he had a brief conversation in which Taylor told him that he killed a girl by accident, and masturbated on the corpse.

[15] Duane Moyes and James Gaskill of the Weber State College crime laboratory testified that the person who cut the telephone cord with a knife and wrapped it around the neck of the victim was likely the same as the one who left behind fingerprints on the phone.

[19][20] On June 17, Judge Roth granted a stay of execution after Taylor's new defense attorney Ron Yengich requested more time to prepare an appeal.

[1] In October 1995, Taylor decided to end further appeals after the Utah Supreme Court rejected his argument that his legal counsel was ineffective.

"[22] Taylor said he was prepared to die partly because of his failing health, including an enlarged heart, bleeding ulcers, and swollen legs and feet.

When Taylor ordered a last meal of pizzas "with everything," some law enforcement veterans recalled that the same request was made by Barton Kay Kirkham, the last man to be hanged in Utah.

[24] On January 25, 1996,[25] Taylor spent his final evening sharing his pizza with his uncle Gordon Lee while joined by former attorney Ed Brass and Catholic priest Reyes Rodriguez, who administered the Last Rites.

[6] Taylor, whose stomach had been doing "flip-flops" earlier in the day, requested antacid medication and declined deputy warden Wally Schulsen's offer for more pizza, soda, and coffee.

[26] Over 168 news and television crews from around the world were on hand to report the execution,[29] which was set up inside a warehouse at Utah State Prison in Draper.

Actor and activist Mike Farrell appeared as a commentator for the American Civil Liberties Union in opposition to the death penalty.

[6] Sister Helen Prejean, the author of Dead Man Walking, wrote Taylor a letter that was delivered right before his execution.

[25] Shortly before midnight, Taylor was led into the execution chamber and strapped to a chair 17 feet away from the shooters with a hood covering his head.

At 12:03 a.m. Mountain Standard Time on January 26, 1996, every shooter fired at the count of five and the white cloth target on Taylor's chest flew off.