These Are The Last Meals Of Serial Killers On Death Row
Death row last meals are a morbid tradition. That morbidity is what struck photographer Henry Hargreaves , who created a photo series of last meals. "No Seconds" is the recreation of last meals of death row inmates. Hargreaves has to say this about his piece: "In New Zealand (where I’m from), and in fact nearly anywhere else in the developed world, the Death Penalty is just not even in the conversation. It is a remnant of an earlier era. This little bit of civility, 'hey we are going to kill you but what would you like to eat?' just jumped off the page."
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Ronnie Lee Gardner
In October 1984, Gardner killed Melvyn John Otterstrom during a robbery in Salt Lake City. At a court hearing for the homicide, he fatally shot attorney Michael Burdell in an unsuccessful escape attempt.
Lord of the Sing Sing
He requested to watch the "Lord of the Rings" trilogy during his last meal, which included lobster tails and apple pie.
Nicola Sacco and Bartolomeo Vanzetti
Sacco and Vanzetti were Italian-born American anarchists who were found guilty of murdering two people during the armed robbery of the Slater and Morrill Shoe Company.
Shocking Last Meal
They were executed in the electric chair seven years later.
Timothy McVeigh
Timothy McVeigh was an American domestic terrorist convicted of killing 168 people and injured over 600 when he detonated a fertilizer bomb in front of federal building in Oklahoma City.
We All Scream
For his last meal he had two pints of mint chocolate chip ice cream. He was executed by lethal injection. He is currently the only terrorist to be killed on US soil.
John Wayne Gacy
Gacy killed over 30 men, burying most of their bodies in his crawl space. After Gacy's death by lethal injection, his brain was removed. It is in the possession of Dr. Helen Morrison, in an attempt to isolate common personality traits of violent sociopaths.
Killer Chicken
His last request including KFC. His last words were, "Kiss my ass."
Ted Bundy
Serial killer and rapist Ted Bundy was executed by electric chair. He once called himself "the most cold-hearted son of a bitch you'll ever meet.”
No Appetite
Attorney Polly Nelson, a member of his last defense team, agreed: "Ted", she wrote, "was the very definition of heartless evil." He refused a special last meal.
Victor Feguer
Victor Feguer was put to death in Iowa by hanging at the age of 28. He was sentenced to death for kidnapping and murder.
Pit of Despair
For his last meal, Feguer requested a single olive with the pit in it. Photographer Hargreaves says this is his favorite image of the series.
Stephen Anderson
Stephen Wayne Anderson was executed at California's San Quentin State Prison by lethal injection in 2002 for the murder of 81-year-old Elizabeth Lyman.
Cheesey Request
He admitted to the killings of at least eight other people, including a fellow inmate and at least seven contract killings. His last meal included two grilled sandwiches and a scoop of cottage cheese.
Teresa Lewis
Teresa Lewis was the only woman on death row in Virginia prior to her execution.
Peas Be with You
She was sentenced to death by lethal injection for the murders of her husband and stepson in order to collect on his life insurance policy. Her last meal included a can of Dr. Pepper and buttered peas.
Ricky Ray Rector
After killing a man in a restaurant, he shot the police officer who had negotiated his surrender. He then shot himself in the head, which he survived but rendered him essentially lobotomized.
Save the Pie
His execution was controversial due to his mental state. He told a guard he would save the pecan pie "for later."
Ronnie Threadgill
Threadgill shot and killed 17-year-old Dexter McDonald in a car jacking incident. Threadgill was executed via lethal injection.
Nothing Special
His last meal was the same one served to the whole unit, as Texas has abolished the special request of a "last meal."
Allen Lee Davis
Allen Lee Davis brutally murdered a young pregnant mother and her two young daughters. Davis was the last Florida inmate killed by the electric chair. Beginning in 2000, all executions were by lethal injection.
Sea You Later
The husband and father of the three murder victims was present during Davis' execution. His last meal included lobster tail and fried shrimp.
Angel Nieves Diaz
Convicted for shooting a manager during a robbery, Nieves denied a last meal and maintained his innocence until the end.
Just Desserts?
He said "The state of Florida is killing an innocent person...The death penalty is not only a form of vengeance but also a cowardly act by humans."
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