TEXAS LAST MEAL
YNOBE MATTHEWS
January 6, 2004

Ynobe is Ebony spelled backwards....

Last Meal: Three pieces of fried chicken, one pork chop, two pieces of fried fish, strawberry ice cream, a six-pack of Coke and a pack of Newport cigarettes. The request for the cigarettes was denied because of a "no tobacco policy."

The Skinny: Matthews, 27. a serial rapist, was executed for the rape and murder of a woman in 2000 and then burned her body in an attempt to confuse investigators about the crime.

Evidence presented at his trial linked Matthews to at least three other rapes and two attempted rapes.

Matthews volunteered to be executed and asked that others not file appeals on his behalf.

Last Words and such: Matthews did not make a final statement, but mouthed "I love you" several times to a sister and cousin who were watching him through a window.

Factoids: Matthews is the first person executed in Texas this year and the 314th since the state resumed capital punishment in 1982.

His execution was the first of four scheduled this month in Texas, where 24 executions were carried out last year. The total was the highest in the nation but average for the state over the last decade.

Matthews was the....
1st murderer executed in U.S. in 2004
886th murderer executed in U.S. since 1976
1st murderer executed in Texas in 2004
314th murderer executed in Texas since 1976