Death row inmate's final meal as he dies by rare execution method recently used for first time in 15 years
Warning: This content contains description of execution which some readers may find distressing.
A death row inmate died by a rare execution method yesterday (14 November) following his final meal.
Stephen Bryant was the third person to be executed by a firing squad in the US state of South Carolina this year. When Brad Sigmon was shot to death in March, it was the first time this method had been used in 15 years.
Before them, only three people had died by firing squad since 1977 and all of them had been in the state of Utah.
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Three prison employees volunteered to carry out the execution of Bryant on Friday and he was pronounced dead at 6:05pm. The 44-year-old had been sentenced to death for the killing of Willard ‘TJ’ Tietjen in October 2004 and pleaded guilty to two other murders.
Rather than lethal injection or the electric chair, Bryant had chosen to die by firing squad.
And before his execution, the inmate had his final meal. The man chose to have spicy mixed seafood stir-fry with fried fish over rice, egg rolls and stuffed shrimp. He then also had two candy bars and German chocolate cake.
Bryant didn’t make any final statement and the Associated Press report that he briefly glanced at 10 witnesses in the execution chamber before a hood was placed over his head by prison officials. Shots rang out roughly 55 seconds after.
It’s reported that after the bullets were fired, the man made no noise and a red bulls-eye target that had been placed on his heart flew forward off his chest.
Before he was pronounced dead, he seemed to take a few shallow breaths before having a final spasm a little over a minute later.
Three family members of victims served as witnesses and reportedly held hands during the execution.
Bryant’s lawyers have reportedly claimed that he did not receive a full brain scan before his trial which could have identified damage. His team said the brain damage was compounded by “appalling physical and sexual abuse committed by several family members’ as its said during sentencing there was a ‘myriad red flags’ of it ignored.
In a statement after his execution, Bryant’s lawyer Bo King said: “Tonight, South Carolina gave Mr Bryant his final wounds in a lifetime of suffering.
“Mr Bryant’s impairments left him unable to endure the tormenting memories of his childhood. When these traumas pushed him to mental collapse, he pleaded for professional help. He was refused care by our broken mental health system because he could not afford the fee of $75.”
Jess Battison