The number brought international attention to Raleigh's Central Prison.

A jury sentenced Boyd to death for killing his estranged wife and father-in-law in 1988. Two of the victims' relatives planned to watch as prison officials injected a series of lethal drugs into Boyd's veins; others had said he deserved to die for his crimes.

As the 2 a.m. death hour approached, hundreds of death penalty opponents protested outside the prison and about 20 were arrested. National leaders in the anti-death penalty movement spoke to the crowd. Reporters from international wire services and local television stations alike were on hand.

Former North Carolina death row inmate Alan Gell was among the protesters, wearing a red T-shirt that said: "Innocent. N.C. Department of Correction Death Row." He told those gathered that he was friendly with Boyd in prison.

"I want to hope and pray that Kenneth Boyd be not remembered as the 1,000th person executed. I hope he is remembered as Kenneth Boyd -- not a number, but a human being," said Gell, who was acquitted of a murder charge after a retrial.

Boyd, 57, was thrust into this spotlight Tuesday when Virginia Gov. Mark R. Warner granted clemency to Robin Lovitt, who had been scheduled for execution Wednesday. With that decision, Warner sent the death penalty protesters and media attention south along Interstate 95.

News accounts about the anticipated 1,000th execution appeared on Agence France-Presse, a French wire service; China Daily, a national English language newspaper; and the Guardian in London.

On Thursday, Boyd visited all day with one of his sons. At 5 p.m., he ate his last meal: a medium-well New York strip steak, a baked potato with sour cream, a roll with butter, a salad with ranch dressing and a Pepsi. At close to 6 p.m., the U.S. Supreme Court rejected Boyd's last legal appeals based on claims of juror misconduct and bias.

At 10 p.m. Thursday, Gov. Mike Easley denied Boyd's request for clemency. "I find no compelling reason to grant clemency and overturn the unanimous jury verdicts affirmed by the state and federal courts," Easley said in a statement.

The protesters lined Western Boulevard holding candles and signs as a slight rain fell and the temperature dropped to 45 degrees. One held a large white cross. Another held a large yellow peace sign. At the end of the sidewalk stood a hangman's gallows.

At 11:27 p.m., about 20 protesters tried to get to the prison to stop the execution. The group dashed past the line of officers standing guard at the top of the prison's driveway. A few got as far as 15 feet down the driveway. As police stopped them, other protesters clapped, cheered and sang "We Shall Overcome."

Police soon handcuffed the arrestees and loaded them into a bus and a police van for the ride to the Wake County jail.

The protest marked a moment that took almost three decades to arrive. In 1972, the U.S. Supreme Court struck down the death penalty as unconstitutional, ruling that states meted out the punishment arbitrarily. Four years later, the court validated several states' rewritten death penalty laws.

Executions resumed in January 1977 when a Utah firing squad killed Gary Gilmore. North Carolina's first execution was in 1984, when James W. Hutchins died for killing three law officers.

Almost 1,500 people died at the hands of the inmates executed during the past 28 years, according to the Death Penalty Information Center.

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