A Missouri man has been executed for killing a man during a violent 1996 crime spree, despite concerns that the inmate’s rare medical condition would cause a gruesome lethal injection.
Russell Bucklew was executed Tuesday evening at the state prison in Bonne Terre. It was Missouri’s first execution since January 2017.
Bucklew looked around and twitched his feet beneath the sheet as he lay on the gurney just before the lethal injection. He suddenly took a deep breath and all movement stopped.
There were no outward signs of distress.
Bucklew had twice previously been within hours of execution, only to have the U.S. Supreme Court grant last-minute reprieves over concerns that Bucklew might suffer during the execution process. He had a condition called cavernous hemangioma and had blood-filled tumors in his head, neck and throat.
Bucklew’s attorneys said in a clemency request to Gov. Mike Parson that a throat tumor could burst, causing Bucklew to choke to death. Parson denied clemency earlier Tuesday.
Bucklew killed Michael Sanders in March 1996, raped his former girlfriend, shot a state trooper and, after escaping from jail, attacked his ex-girlfriend’s mother and her boyfriend with a hammer.
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