November 4, 2022 12:00pm EDT
Lore of the last meal: Inside the captivating culinary ritual before vicious killers face death
Last meals requested by condemned inmates across the country have ranged from epic portions to a single plate with barely any food as part of an ongoing ritual that proceeds the execution
By Louis Casiano | Fox News
The last meal for condemned prison inmates has become a thing of lore over the years as details about their gruesome crimes and culinary preferences in their final hours have garnered widespread media attention.
Inmates on death row in prison systems across the country have included some of the most vicious and vile murderers whose crimes have shocked and sickened the public.
John Wayne Gacy, the famed serial killer who murdered 33 boys and men in the 70s, ordered a feast for his last day alive. Just before his 1994 execution inside an Illinois prison, Gacy had a bucket of KFC fried chicken, 12 fried shrimp, french fries and a pound of strawberries among other items.
Florida inmate Danny Rolling, known as the Gainesville Ripper, enjoyed lobster tail, butterfly shrimp, a baked potato, sweet tea and strawberry cheesecake before his 2006 death by lethal injection, according to local reports.
Of course, there are always exceptions. Victor Feguer, the last man executed by the federal government years before Oklahoma City bomber Timothy McVeigh, kidnapped and killed an Iowa doctor who refused to give him drugs. When he was hanged in 1963, all he asked for his last meal was an olive with the pit still inside.
McVeigh had two pints of mint and chocolate chip ice cream before his 2001 lethal injection death.
All four men were part of an ongoing tradition where inmates slated to die at the hands of the state are given the option of one last meal of their choice before going to the afterlife. Over the years, the meals have ranged from epic portions to a single vegetable in some cases.
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