Murders of Alex Hopps and James Green
The murders of Alex Hopps and James Green occurred on January 7, 1991, in Spartanburg, South Carolina. Hopps and Green were theater attendants at the WestGate Mall Cinema, where they were murdered during a robbery by David Rocheville (January 28, 1968 – December 3, 1999) and Richard Longworth (January 19, 1968 – April 15, 2005). Both Rocheville and Longworth were executed for the crime by lethal injection, in 1999 and 2005, respectively. Murders On the evening of January 7, 1991, Rocheville and Longworth decided, while driving around in their minivan, to rob the WestGate Mall Cinema in Spartanburg, South Carolina. After entering the theater, Longworth took his handgun from his shoulder holster and gave it to Rocheville, and the two viewed the movie Dances with Wolves for a short time. The two then proceeded into the lobby to implement their plan to rob the theater of money located in the ticket booth. When they encountered an usher, Alexander George Hopps, 19, walking down the hallway, Longworth knocked Hopps down, jumped on him, held his hand over Hopps' mouth, and dragged him outside of the theater through the side exit. As Longworth pinned Hopps against a waist-high bar that protected the air conditioning unit, Rocheville shot Hopps in the left side of the head. Rocheville then returned the gun to Longworth, who placed it back in his shoulder holster. To reenter the theater, Longworth and Rocheville walked around to the front of the cinema and found the front doors locked. They motioned to James Todd Green, 24, a cinema employee to whom they had waved when they initially entered the theater, and Green opened the door. At that point, Longworth drew his gun and demanded that Green open the safe in the ticket booth. Longworth took several money bags from the safe and ascertained from Green that there were more bags in Green's automobile, ready for deposit. After retrieving those bags, Longworth and Rocheville forced Green into their minivan, which Longworth drove. Longworth again handed his gun to Rocheville and instructed him to shoot Green if he moved. After driving away from the theater, Longworth stopped the vehicle and instructed Green to get out, walk five paces, get on his knees, and stare straight ahead. At that point, Rocheville shot Green in the back of the head. Aftermath Longworth and Rocheville were arrested the next day, after Rocheville led law enforcement officers to Green's body. After Longworth was arrested, he provided officers with a detailed statement of the crimes that he and Rocheville had committed. Each was indicted on two counts of murder, one count of kidnapping, and one count of armed robbery. Separate juries convicted them and sentenced them to death. Longworth was convicted and then sentenced to death on September 10, 1991. Rocheville admitted that he killed Green but said that he was coerced into it and claimed that he was afraid that Longworth would kill him. Longworth claimed in his appeals that he had ineffective counsel during his