Procedure 770

The death chamber will be equipped with 12 rolls of adhesive tape, 20 syringes, 10 needles, 15 tubes of varying sizes, four bags of saline solution, scissors, six tourniquets, two boxes of surgical gloves and one box each of surgical masks and alcohol wipes. There will be handcuffs and leg irons.

Prison officials have been dismantling the life that Williams has known since he arrived on death row in 1981, and seeking to desensitize him to his impending death.

Williams was moved, in shackles, to a cellblock at the north end of the turn-of-the-century prison by San Francisco Bay.

On Sunday, the equipment and chemicals were inventoried and any outdated items replaced.

Today, the 5,500 inmates at San Quentin will stay locked in their cells.

So far, Williams "has not agreed to be a part of any of the normal procedures," said Todd Slosek, a spokesman for the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation. The prisoner declined, for example, to specify whether he wanted to be executed by gas or injection. The default method is injection, Slosek said.

Today, one member of the execution team — whose identities remain secret — will take possession of the necessary drugs until they are needed or returned unused.

Officers will test the phone lines that run from the execution chamber to the California Supreme Court and the state attorney general's office. That's in case a stay is granted.

Today, an escort team will strip-search and shackle the prisoner in his cell. Then "the inmate, wearing only underwear, is escorted to the holding cell, where he is retained pending an unclothed body search, which includes a metal-detector scan," says Procedure 770.

The prisoner receives new clothes: undershirt, shorts, socks, blue jeans, blue shirt and canvas slippers. Once clothed and placed back in restraints, the inmate is walked to the elevator and rides down six tiers, to the death-watch cell. The cell has a bed and mattress, blanket, pillow, heater, radio, television, three sets of state-issued clothes, towels and a chess-and-checkers set. A lieutenant will tell the inmate that dinner is served at 6 p.m., and will introduce the sergeant and two officers who will stand watch throughout this evening.

Valium or another relaxant will be available if the inmate requests it and health authorities approve.

The condemned inmate is also allowed "reasonable last requests," including special food and a choice of radio or television programs. Some inmates refuse last meals; Williams had not ordered one as of Friday.

Two hours before the execution — scheduled for one minute past midnight — the injection team will check that supplies are in place. An hour before the execution, the team readies the tubes and needles.

Visits to Williams will have ended, but the inmate's attorney can call, and a spiritual adviser, if Williams wants one, can stay with him until 45 minutes before the execution.

The warden will arrive, speak briefly with Williams and direct that witnesses take their places.

There is space for 50 witnesses, whose identities the prison does not reveal. Williams has not requested that any of his own family members or close friends be permitted to witness his execution.

Once witnesses are in place, Williams will walk to the death chamber. The execution team will strap him to a gurney and connect him intravenously to two bags of saline solution. No member of the San Quentin staff may address team members by name or ask them anything that would require an oral response.

After a final time check, Warden Steven Ornoski will order that the flow of saline cease and be replaced with lethal agents: first, the sedative sodium pentothal, then potassium chloride to paralyze Williams and, finally, pancuronium bromide to stop his heart.

The identity of the person who has inserted the poison will not be disclosed. The infusion will continue until the prison doctor pronounces Williams dead.

"The body shall be removed with care and dignity and placed in a body bag," says Procedure 770. "The chamber should then be cleaned thoroughly."