A death row inmate bizarrely requested a lump of dirt for his final meal, but he was denied his request.

James Edward Smith was sentenced to death for a 1983 murder during a robbery in Houston, Texas.

Smith was convicted of fatally shooting Larry Don Rohus, the district manager of an insurance company, during a robbery, per reports.

On the day of the crime, Smith entered the cashier’s office armed with a pistol and demanded money.

While another employee hid, Rohus complied, placing cash into a small bin and setting it on a table. As Rohus walked away, Smith shot him twice, killing him instantly.

Smith was arrested shortly after the shooting, and apprehended by a group of Rohus' coworkers and local construction workers who tackled him in a nearby parking lot.

He was held until police arrived. During his trial, Smith confessed to six additional "ritualistic" murders, though these claims were never proven.

Originally from Kentucky, Smith was sentenced to death by lethal injection. In the days leading up to his execution, he made an unconventional final meal request - rhaeakunda dirt.

The inmate intended to use the dirt for a voodoo ritual that he believed would aid in his reincarnation, per the Express.

However, since dirt was not on the list of approved foods, prison officials denied the request and instead provided him with plain yogurt.

Smith’s last words were "Hare Krishna," a well-known Hindu mantra from the 15th-century Bhakti movement before he was executed in 1990.

Last meals are often an interesting topic of discussion, but if you find yourself on death row in Texas, you won't get to make a request.

Texas ended the long-standing tradition of offering death row inmates a final meal before execution, following an outrageous request from convicted white supremacist Lawrence Russell Brewer.

Brewer, 44, was convicted and sentenced to death for the 1998 murder of James Byrd Jr., a Black man who was brutally tortured and killed by Brewer and two accomplices, John William King and Shawn Allen Berry.

Byrd was chained by the ankles to a pickup truck and dragged for three miles, resulting in his decapitation and dismemberment.

According to the BBC, Brewer and King were sentenced to death, marking the first time white men had received the death penalty for killing a Black man in Texas.

Their actions were tied to their affiliation with white supremacist groups, including the Ku Klux Klan.

Before his execution, Brewer submitted a staggering list of foods for his last meal: chicken-fried steaks, fried okra with ketchup, a cheese omelet with ground beef, jalapeños, and bell peppers, a triple-meat bacon cheeseburger, three fajitas, one pound of barbecue with half a loaf of white bread, pizza, a pint of vanilla ice cream, peanut butter fudge, and three root beers.

Despite the prison staff’s efforts to fulfill his request, Brewer refused to eat any of it, telling guards he wasn’t hungry.

His refusal sparked outrage, leading Texas Senator John Whitmire to take immediate action.

Whitmire, appalled by the incident, wrote a letter to the Texas Department of Criminal Justice, stating: "Enough is enough...it is extremely inappropriate to give a person sentenced to death such a privilege. It's a privilege which the perpetrator did not provide to their victim."

As a result, Texas abolished the 87-year-old tradition of granting final meal requests for death row inmates.

Featured image credit: Compassionate Eye Foundation/Steven Errico/Getty

The concept of a ‘last meal’ is one of the more curious aspects of the US justice system, which allows prisoners on death row to order a final bespoke meal the night before their execution.

Although the practice varies from state to state, inmates are usually told to prepare a menu in advance and typically ask for a mountain of junk food - including pizza, hamburgers, fried chicken, and steak, along with heaps of chocolate and ice cream for dessert.

Different states have different rules - some enforce a strict $40 limit on an inmate’s requests, while others insist that all food must be bought and prepared locally in order to prevent prisoners from requesting overly-exotic and expensive foods.

But over in Texas, last meals have been scrapped altogether, after a condemned prisoner took advantage of a loophole to spite his captors one last time before they executed him.

Credit: Texas Department of Criminal JusticeLawrence Russell Brewer was a white supremacist who was sentenced to death for the racially-motivated killing of James Byrd Jr, who he murdered with the help of three accomplices by dragging him along behind a pick-up truck for three miles along a road.

Brewer and his accomplices were the first white men to receive the death penalty in Texas for the murder of a Black man, and after 21 years on death row, he was finally executed in 2011.

As was standard practice at the time, shortly before his execution Brewer was asked what he wanted for his final meal, and responded with an absolutely enormous mountain of food.

According to a report from the New York Times, Brewer was served two chicken fried steaks with gravy and sliced onions, a triple-patty bacon cheeseburger, and a cheese omelet with beef mince, tomatoes, onions, bell peppers, and jalapenos.

Credit: Wirestock, Inc. / AlamyBut that wasn’t all. In addition, he was also served a bowl of fried okra with ketchup, a pound of barbecued meat with half a loaf of white bread, three fajitas, and a meat pizza.

For dessert, he was given a pint of 'homemade vanilla' Blue Bell ice cream, one slab of peanut butter fudge with crushed peanuts, and three root beers to wash it all down with.

All in all, it sounds like a meal fit for a king- or it would’ve been if he’d decided to eat any of it.

As it transpired, Brewer didn’t eat a single bite of his elaborate last meal, and only ordered the mountain of food to spite the justice system one last time before they killed him.

Texas lawmakers were so outraged by the disrespect that the practice of last meals was scrapped altogether following his death, with State Senator John Whitmire calling for an immediate ban after claiming Brewer’s actions “made a mockery” of the system.

Huntsville Unit, Texas State Penitentiary. Credit: ZUMA Press, Inc. / AlamySenator Whitmire reportedly said in a statement: “He never gave his victim an opportunity for a last meal. Why in the world are you going to treat him like a celebrity two hours before you execute him?"

“It’s wrong to treat a vicious murderer in this fashion. Let him eat the same meal on the chow line as the others," he added.

Effective immediately, everyone on death row in Texas would eat the same food everybody else did, straight from the prison canteen.

And as for Brewer himself, he remained unrepentant 'til the very end. Speaking KHOU 11 News in Houston the day before his death, he said, per Huffpost: “As far as any regrets, no, I have no regrets.

“No, I'd do it all over again, to tell you the truth.”

Featured image credit: Mirco Gabriel / Alamy

Death row inmates in Texas no longer get a final meal before their execution - and it's down to a white supremacist's shocking request.

For many years, last meals have been a customary ritual before prisoners have their death sentence carried out.

Some convicts' requests have been pretty specific, like when John Wayne Gacy asked for 12 fried shrimp, a bucket of original recipe KFC, french fries, and a pound of strawberries. Others have been simple, like Ted Bundy requesting steak and eggs.

However, one inmate named Lawrence Russell Brewer - who was a white supremacist - requested an outrageous special meal before his death, and this led to Texas abolishing last meals for other death row inmates.

Brewer, 44, was imprisoned on June 7, 1998, along with John William King and Shawn Allen Berry for murdering a Black man named James Byrd Jr.

The group of men killed Byrd by torturing him before chaining him by the ankles to the back of a pickup truck and dragging him behind it for three miles, per The Mirror.

According to the Texas Department of Criminal Justice: "Brewer and his co-defendants then dragged the victim to his death, leaving his decapitated and dismembered body to be found the following day by citizens and law enforcement officials," as cited by the outlet.

Brewer and King were convicted of capital murder and sent to death row, making them the first white men to receive the death penalty for killing a Black man in Texas, causing the state to introduce new laws around hate crimes. Meanwhile, Berry received a life sentence for his involvement in the crime.

It was contended in court that the three men carried out their disturbing criminal act "in part, due to their racially separatist affiliation with the Confederate Knights of America and the Ku Klux Klan," per the Texas Department of Criminal Justice. 

Before his execution, Brewer took full advantage of the last meal request, asking for a wild concoction of foods, including chicken steaks, fried okra with ketchup, and a cheese omelet with ground beef, jalapenos, and bell peppers.

It didn't end there as he also requested a triple-meat bacon cheeseburger, three fajitas with all the trimmings, one pound of barbecue and a half loaf of white bread, pizza meat lover's special, one pint of vanilla ice cream; a slab of peanut butter fudge, and three root beers.

The guards did their best to fulfill Brewer's final meal list but, when the prisoner was presented with it, he refused to eat a single mouthful, saying that he wasn't hungry.

Brewer's refusal resulted in Texan Senator John Whitmire ending the 87-year-old tradition, meaning from that day forward, nobody on death row in Texas has had a last meal request granted.

He wrote a letter to the executive director of the Texas Criminal Justice Division, stating: "Enough is enough...it is extremely inappropriate to give a person sentenced to death such a privilege. It's a privilege which the perpetrator did not provide to their victim," per the BBC.

He called the last meal request an "extremely inappropriate" privilege, adding: "One which the perpetrator did not provide to their victim."

After spending 12 years of his life on death row, Brewer was executed via lethal injection on September 21, 2011. Asked if he had any final words, he replied: "No. I have no final statement," and was pronounced dead at 6.21PM.

The victim's two sisters and a niece called the execution "the next step to total justice for James," as cited by Reuters.

"Hopefully, today we have been reminded that racial hatred and prejudice can lead to tragic consequences for both the victim and his family, as well as the perpetrator and his family," Clara Taylor, Byrd's sister, said. "Our sincere condolences to the family of Lawrence Brewer."

Featured image credit: Buck Kelly / Getty

A man who was on death row in Texas is the sole reason why other inmates in the state are no longer offered a final meal request.

Russell Brewer, 44, was sentenced to death for the brutal 1998 killing of James Byrd Jr., a Black man who was tortured and then chained by his ankles to the back of a pickup truck and dragged for three miles.

According to the Texas Department of Criminal Justice: "Brewer and his co-defendants then dragged the victim to his death, leaving his decapitated and dismembered body to be found the following day by citizens and law enforcement officials," as cited by The Mirror.

The crime shocked the nation and led to sweeping hate crime legislation. Brewer and John William King were convicted of capital murder and sent to death row, becoming the first white men in Texas to receive the death penalty for killing a Black man.

Their actions were partly tied to affiliations with white supremacist groups like the Confederate Knights of America and the Ku Klux Klan, per the Texas Department of Criminal Justice.

Shawn Allen Berry, also involved in the crime, received a life sentence.

Before his execution on September 21, 2011, Brewer made headlines with an outrageous final meal request.

It included two chicken fried steaks, fried okra with ketchup, a cheese omelet with ground beef, jalapenos, and bell peppers.

He added a triple-meat bacon cheeseburger, three fajitas with all the trimmings, one pound of barbecue, a half loaf of white bread, a meat lover’s pizza, one pint of vanilla ice cream, a slab of peanut butter fudge with crushed peanuts, and three root beers.

But what really rubbed law officials up the wrong way was that they obliged the request, all for Brewer to refuse to eat a single bite.

When asked if he had any final words, Brewer replied: "No. I have no final statement," and was pronounced dead at 6:21PM via lethal injection.

That stunt infuriated lawmakers.

Texas Senator John Whitmire immediately took action, writing to the executive director of the Texas Criminal Justice Division: "Enough is enough... it is extremely inappropriate to give a person sentenced to death such a privilege. It's a privilege which the perpetrator did not provide to their victim," per the BBC.

His words were echoed again: "It is extremely inappropriate to give a person sentenced to death such a privilege."

The executive director agreed. The 87-year-old tradition of granting final meal requests was permanently scrapped. From that point forward, no death row inmate in Texas would be granted a last meal of their choosing.

For the family of James Byrd Jr., Brewer’s execution marked a moment of painful closure.

Clara Taylor, Byrd’s sister, said: "Hopefully, today we have been reminded that racial hatred and prejudice can lead to tragic consequences for both the victim and his family, as well as the perpetrator and his family. Our sincere condolences to the family of Lawrence Brewer."

The victim’s two sisters and a niece called the execution “the next step to total justice for James,” as cited by Reuters.

Featured image credit: Joe Raedle/Newsmakers/Getty

People have always had a morbid fascination with death row inmates and what they select as their final meals.

Perhaps it's the curiosity of seeing what somebody actually chooses to eat as their final meal on Earth or maybe it's just another glimpse into the minds of the nation's most feared criminals.

Either way, final meals continue to be an eerie tradition to this day.

From one inmate's ludicrous final feast to Texas abolishing all inmate final meal requests after one guy overstepped the mark - there are many fascinating stories to tell.

But perhaps the most bizarre of all is that of Victor Harry Feguer - the convicted killer who ate only a single olive as his final meal.

When he was just 28 years old, Feguer was executed by hanging in 1963.

The Michigan-born killed had been in Iowa three years prior when he started panning the local phone directory for physicians.

After landing on the number of Dr. Edward Bartels, Feguer told the doctor that he was with a woman who was in urgent need of medical attention. And so, Dr. Feguer rushed to the given location.

Sadly, it was all a ruse - and Feguer swiftly kidnapped the 34-year-old doctor.

Dr Bartel was killed in Illinois with a single gunshot to the head - his body dumped in a cornfield.

Just days later, the FBI received a tip-off from a man who Feguer had attempted to sell a car to without the correct paperwork. The information led to Feguer's arrest.

Authorities summarized that Feguer had killed the doctor in an effort to steal any drugs the physician may have been carrying to help treat sick patients. Despite repeatedly professing his innocence, he was sentenced to death.

The story took an unexpected political turn when Feguer successfully lodged an appeal that could have seen President John F. Kennedy secure his life, per the LA Times.

However, JFK reportedly found the crime "so brutal" that the appeal was denied.

"Taking all factors into account, it is my decision that the petition should be and is hereby denied," the President wrote in a memo to Feguer.

When his three years behind bars coming to an end, it was time for Feguer to submit his final meal request.

A single olive - with the pit included.

The New York Daily News reports that Feguer had told guards that - when he was dead and buried - he had hoped that an olive tree would grow where he lay. An olive tree is renowned for being a symbol of peace.

Photographer Henry Hargreaves - who recreated a number of famous last meals for a photo collection called No Seconds - later told CBS News: "It's just such a polarising image.

"We think about last meals, and is it something that's going to be totally gluttonous, and then he just has a single olive."

"You know, it's so simple, beautiful, and kind of final. It's like a full stop at the end of his life."

Prison records state that Feguer grew consistently "quiet" as the days to his execution ticked away.

On the day before he died, he was said to be "cooperative and resigned" - with officers adding that he was "very calm" on the morning of his execution.

After his execution, the olive pit was reportedly found inside Feguer's suit pocket - adding truth to his notion that he wished for a tree to grow after his death.

Featured image credit: Iowa Police