Oklahoma man dies by lethal injection in the country’s final execution in 2024

By Lucas

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Oklahoma man dies by lethal injection in the country's final execution in 2024

Oklahoma City (AP) — An Oklahoma man who murdered a 10-year-old child in a cannibalistic dream died by lethal injection Thursday, marking the country’s 25th and last execution of the year.

Kevin Ray Underwood was declared deceased at 10:14 a.m. at the Oklahoma State Penitentiary in McAlester. It was Oklahoma’s fourth execution of the year, and it occurred on Underwood’s 45th birthday.

Oklahoma employs a three-drug lethal injection protocol that begins with the sedative midazolam, followed by a second drug that paralyzes the offender and a third that stops their heart.

Underwood, a former grocery store employee, was condemned to death for killing Jamie Rose Bolin in 2006. He admitted to enticing Jamie into his apartment, striking her over the head with a cutting board, then choking and sexually assaulting her. He informed authorities that he almost beheaded Jamie in his bathtub before abandoning his attempt to eat her.

On Thursday, while strapped to a gurney inside the death chamber, Underwood apologized to Jamie’s family as well as his own, “for all the terrible things I did.”

“The decision to execute me on my birthday and six days before Christmas was a needlessly cruel thing to do to my family,” Underwood told reporters, “but I’m very sorry for what I did and I wish I could take it back.”

As the execution began at 10:04 a.m., Underwood turned to members of his legal team and his family, including his mother. His breathing became slightly labored, and his eyes closed a few minutes later. At 10:09 a.m., a doctor entered the execution chamber and shook him several times before declaring him unconscious. He was pronounced dead five minutes later.

Lori Pate, Jamie’s sister, was one of numerous relatives who watched the execution. She praised prosecutors for guiding her family through the nearly 18-year process from Jamie’s death to Underwood’s execution.

“This doesn’t bring our Jamie back but it does allow the space in our hearts to focus on her and allow the healing process to begin,” Pate explained.

During a hearing last week, three members of the state Pardon and Parole Board voted unanimously against recommending clemency.

Underwood’s lawyers argued that he deserved to be spared the death penalty due to his long history of abuse and serious mental health issues, which included autism, obsessive-compulsive disorder, bipolar and panic disorders, post-traumatic stress disorder, schizotypal personality disorder, and various deviant sexual paraphilias.

Prosecutors stated that while many people suffer from mental illnesses, this does not justify causing harm to children.

In a last-minute request to the United States Supreme Court for a stay of execution, Underwood’s attorneys argued that he deserved a hearing before all five members of the board and that the panel violated state law and Underwood’s rights by rescheduling the hearing at the last minute after two board members resigned. Earlier Thursday morning, the court denied the bid.

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