RICHMOND, Va. (AP) -- If it weren't for a four-page letter scribbled with hatred and ridicule, Paul Warner Powell likely would have spent the rest of his life in prison.

Instead, the 31-year-old is scheduled to die Thursday in Virginia's electric chair because he bragged to prosecutors about how he tried to rape his teenage friend before he stabbed her to death once he thought he could no longer face the death penalty for the crime.

Powell was convicted in 2000 of fatally stabbing 16-year-old Stacie Reed of Manassas. He also raped and attempted to kill her 14-year-old sister.

His attorneys have asked Gov. Bob McDonnell to spare him. McDonnell's spokesman says he is reviewing the clemency request.

Powell's execution is set for 9 p.m. Thursday at Greensville Correctional Center in Jarratt.

(Copyright 2010 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)