Death Row man orders hefty last meal before execution as his ‘legs twitched’

Curtis Windom told a friend ‘you’re gonna read about me’ before buying a gun and killing a man who allegedly owed him $2,000, his girlfriend and her mother in a bloodthirsty rampage

A Florida man on Death Row ordered a massive last meal before he was killed by lethal injection. Curtis Windom, 59, had been sentenced to death for the murders of his girlfriend Valerie Davis, her mother Mary Lubin and Johnnie Lee in the Orlando area on November 7, 1992.

He was executed Thursday, marking Florida’s highest number of executions in a single year since capital punishment was reinstated. Windom was declared dead at 6:17pm after receiving a lethal injection at Florida State Prison near Starke, according to officials.

As the curtain was lifted to reveal the execution chamber, Windom’s face was hidden behind a sheet. He uttered something about being on Death Row, but his words were indiscernible.

As the lethal drugs began to take effect, he started taking deep breaths. His legs twitched several times before he became motionless.

Before he died, Windom enjoyed a hearty last meal of ribs, baked beans, collard greens, potato salad, pie, ice cream and a soda, according to Florida Department of Corrections spokesman Ted Veerman.

Following the execution, Kemene Hunter, sister of victim Valerie Davis, wore a T-shirt to a press conference that read, “Justice for her, healing for me.” She said: “All I want to say is, it took 33 years to get some closure,” adding, “Vengeance is mine says the lord.”

Windom became the 30th individual executed in the US this year, with Florida spearheading the charge following a series of death warrants signed by Republican Governor Ron DeSantis. A 12th prisoner, David Joseph Pittman, 63, is set to face execution in the state on September 17.

Court documents reveal that a friend informed Windom on the day of the killings that Lee – who allegedly owed Windom $2,000 – had scooped $114 at a greyhound racetrack. Windom told his friend that “you’re gonna read about me” and that he intended to murder Lee.

Windom travelled to a Walmart to purchase a. 38-calibre revolver and a box of 50 shells, according to court testimony.

Shortly afterwards, Windom drove to locate Lee, found him and shot him twice in the back from his vehicle, followed by two additional shots whilst standing over the bloke at point-blank range.

Windom then made his way to Davis’ flat and fatally shot his girlfriend “with no provocation” in front of a mate, court records show. Windom randomly shot and wounded another man before encountering Davis’ mother, Mary Lubin, as she drove to her daughter’s flat.

Lubin was shot twice in her car at a stop sign.

Windom was handed death sentences for the murders and a 22-year sentence for the attempted murder. Davis was the mother of one of Windom’s children, a daughter who had campaigned to prevent the execution from taking place.

“Forgiveness comes with time, and 33 years is a long time. I, myself, have forgiven my father,” his daughter, Curtisia Windom, said in a statement from an anti-death penalty group that delivered more than 5,000 petition signatures to the governor this week, urging him to intervene.

The prisoner’s legal team had lodged countless appeals throughout the years, including arguments that evidence of his psychological difficulties should have been presented during the trial. However, the Florida Supreme Court determined this wouldn’t have been detrimental to Windom’s case, as prosecutors would then have introduced evidence showing he was a narcotics dealer and that the two women he murdered were police informants.

Numerous of Windom’s appeals had centred on allegations that he received inadequate legal representation regarding the presentation of mental health evidence.

His ultimate appeal was dismissed on Wednesday by the U.S. Supreme Court.

Following the 1976 reinstatement of capital punishment in America by the Supreme Court, Florida’s previous record for annual executions was eight in 2014. The Sunshine State has put more people to death than any other state this year, whilst Texas and South Carolina are joint second with four executions apiece.

Prior to Thursday, Florida’s most recent execution occurred on 19th August when Kayle Bates, 67, was given a lethal injection for murdering a woman he had kidnapped from an insurance office. Executions in Florida are conducted using a three-drug injection – a sedative, a paralytic and a drug that halts the heart, as per the state Department of Corrections.

For the latest breaking news and stories from across the globe from the Daily Star, sign up for our newsletter by clicking here.