GEORGIA LAST MEAL
TIMOTHY DON CARR
January 25, 2005

...under the "diabolical" spell of his girlfriend...

Last Meal: Two Mushroom and Swiss Hamburgers, French Fries, a Vanilla Milkshake, a Chocolate Milkshake, and two soft drinks.

The skinny: Carr, 34, was executed Tuesday for fatally stabbing a teenager and beating him with a baseball bat as he pleaded for his life during a robbery in 1992.

More skinny: Carr, his girl friend, and the 17-year-old victim attended a party on the evening of the crimes, where they had been drinking alcohol and an hallucinogenic tea and smoking marijuana before the murder.

Carr and his gal discussed robbing the victim at the party. In the early hours of the following day, the girlfriend took the victim's car keys and talked him into letting her drive him home. She drove the victim, Carr, and two juveniles to a remote area in the victim's car, a Pontiac Grand Prix. During the ride, Carr showed one of the juveniles a large knife and whispered that he intended to kill the victim. When they stopped the car on a dirt road, and when the victim opened the trunk to look for more drugs, Carr grabbed the victim's hair, pulled his head back and slashed his throat and beat him in the head with a baseball bat. They dragged the victim's body to the roadside, leaving him to die from his injuries.

Carr and his girlfriend fled to Tennessee in the victim's car and were arrested following a high speed chase. After receiving medical treatment at a local hospital, they were placed in the back of a police car in which police had activated a hidden tape recorder. Their recorded conversation, in which Carr admitted killing the victim, was introduced into evidence at Carr's trial.

The jury was also authorized to find from the evidence that the knife used to stab the victim was discovered in the girlfriend's purse. She was convicted and sentenced to a life sentence with the possibility of parole.

Carr claimed to be under the "diabolical" spell of his girlfriend when he stabbed and beat the man to death.

Leading up...A court-appointed forensic psychologist who examined Carr said in an affidavit Friday that Carr was mentally ill when he committed the crime and had recently ingested ``massive quantities of hallucinogenic mushrooms.''

Last words and such: "Peace," Carr said before a sedative, lung-paralyzing drug and the poison potassium chloride were injected into his arms. Earlier, while still in a holding cell, he apologized for his crime and said it was time for justice to be done.

Factoids: About 16 anti-death penalty protesters gathered outside the prison.

Carr was the...

4th murderer executed in U.S. in 2005
948th murderer executed in U.S. since 1976
1st murderer executed in Georgia in 2005
37th murderer executed in Georgia since 1976

TEXAS LAST MEAL
TROY KUNKLE
January 25, 2005

..."No Remorse" from the album "Kill 'Em All."...

Last Meal: Fried chicken, chicken fried steak, a hamburger with cheese and onions, french fries, cauliflower, cinnamon rolls, apple pie and milk.

The skinny: Kunkle was executed by lethal injection for the robbery and murder more than 20 years ago of a man carrying $13 in his wallet.

Kunkle's execution was delayed for two hours as the U.S. Supreme Court considered last minute appeals by his lawyers. Twice last year Kunkle was spared from the death chamber by court rulings on the day he was set to die. The most recent halt came Nov. 18 when the U.S. Supreme Court stopped the execution about 40 minutes after Kunkle could have been strapped to the death chamber gurney for injection. Tuesday's execution date was his sixth.

Kunkle, 38, spent more than half of his life on death row.

More skinny: Kunkle and three companions drove from San Antonio to Corpus Christi. They were high on drugs and beer and looking for someone to rob when they saw the victim walking along a road, offered him a ride, and demanded his wallet. Kunkle then told one of his friends to kill the man. When he refused, Kunkle took the gun and stuck it up against the victim’s head and said, “We’re going to take you back here and blow your brains out.” After one of his friends drove the car behind a skating rink, Kunkle shot the man in the back of the head and took his wallet. They opened the car door and pushed the body out.

After the shooting, Kunkle quoted the following line from a song called "No Remorse" from an album "Kill 'Em All" by the heavy metal rock group Metallica: “Another day, another death, another sorrow, another breath,” and told the group that the murder was “beautiful.”

Kunkle wrote METALLICA lyrics, alleging the lyrics from "No Remorse" inspired him to kill. This disturbed the band's lead singer, James Hetfield, when he learned how Kunkle reacted to the verse. Hetfield, in 1984, said, "I guess this kid took it into his own ways. Of course, we're upset but I mean we had nothing directly to do with it."

Prosecutors remembered him at one point during his trial playing an air guitar in the courtroom as lawyers discussed whether the Metallica song could be admitted into evidence.

Kunkle has the METALLICA logo tattooed on his left arm.

One accomplice received a life sentence for capital murder. Two other accomplices were both sentenced to 30 years for murder.

Last words and such: "I would like to ask you to forgive me. I made a mistake and I am sorry for what I did. All I can do is ask you to forgive me. I love you and I will see all of you in Heaven. I love you very much. Praise Jesus. I love you." He then recited the Lord's Prayer.

"Shame to Texas," his wife said as she watched him die.

Factoids: Kunkle was the...

3rd murderer executed in U.S. in 2005
947th murderer executed in U.S. since 197
62nd murderer executed in Texas in 2005
338th murderer executed in Texas since 1976

Texas Last Meal: Troy Albert Kunkle, Jan. 25, 2005.

Kunkle requested fried chicken, cauliflower, chicken fried steak, french fries with ketchup, a hamburger with cheese and onions, cinnamon rolls, apple pie and milk.

A complete summary will appear when our computer gets out of the shop...late Wednesday or early Thursday.