Stephen Bryant, the South Carolina triple murderer, ate his final dinner before being murdered by firing squad.
Bryant, 44, was pronounced dead at the Broad River Correctional Institution in Columbia, South Carolina, on Friday, November 14, at 6:05 p.m. local time, according to the Associated Press. He had preferred death by firing squad over lethal injection or electrocution, all of which are legal in the state.
According to the Associated Press, Bryant’s final dinner was mixed seafood stir fry, fried fish over rice, egg rolls, stuffed shrimp, two candy bars, and German chocolate cake.
Three prison employees carried out the execution. According to the site, 10 witnesses were there, including several of the victims’ family members. Bryant issued no final statement.
Bryant was found guilty of fatally shooting three individuals during a week-long burglary and murder spree in rural Sumter County in the fall of 2004. The South Carolina Daily Gazette said that he was 23 years old at the time.
Bryant murdered his 36-year-old coworker, Clifton Gainey, on October 9 of that year, and subsequently burglarized his home. According to the Daily Gazette, two days later, he murdered Willard Tietjen, 62, in his home.
According to The Post and Courier, Bryant left notes scribbled in blood on the wall of Tietjen’s home, one of which read: “Victim number four in two weeks, catch me if you can,” He also mocked the victim’s wife and children when he answered Tietjen’s phone, claiming the guy was “dead.”
Bryant killed Chris Burgess, 35, two days later after meeting him at a convenience shop, according to the Daily Gazette.
Bryant pleaded guilty to the charges in 2008. According to court records, his lawyers contended that he attempted to seek mental health counseling prior to the murders because he kept reliving sexual assault he claimed he experienced as a child.
Bryant is the third person executed by firing squad in South Carolina this year, and the seventh overall, according to the Daily Gazette.
Bryant’s attorney, Bo King, noted that his client’s final goal was for no one to be denied access to mental health care merely because they could not afford it, as Bryant claimed.
“That is consistent with the man we knew, who showed grace and courage in forgiving his family and great love for those both inside and outside of his prison,” King said in the statement, according to the Daily Gazette. “We’ll remember his unusual connections, strong protection, and passion for nature, water, and the world. “We’ll miss him.”
