Florida man yells 'murderers!' as he's executed for slaying

https://www.miamiherald.com/ ^ | 2/22/18 | JASON DEAREN

[BBell]

STARKE, FLA. A Florida inmate convicted of raping and killing a college student decades ago screamed and yelled "murderers!" three times, thrashing on a gurney as he was being put to death Thursday.

The governor's office said Eric Scott Branch, 47, was pronounced dead at 7:05 p.m. Thursday after receiving a lethal injection at Florida State Prison. Branch was convicted of the 1993 rape and fatal beating of University of West Florida student Susan Morris, 21, whose naked body was found buried in a shallow grave near a nature trail.

[nikos1121]

1993?

[BenLurkin]

Yup!

[A Navy Vet]

I've change my mind on capitol punishment some years back. We all die from cancer, diabetes, and countless other painful disease or trauma. Why should these monsters get off just going to sleep? I'd rather see these monsters breaking big rocks into little rocks and every other soul destroying punishment we can think of.

I would really enjoy watching a balanced documentary expose' on how they become sick, broken, and frail from their back-breaking work. Don't ease them along to death; crush their spirit, humanity, make them wish for death for the rest of their lives. That's real punishment and it could make a difference with some not to commit their atrocities.

Since that is not feasible in this Politically Correct era, how about public hangings with loose rope and a slow trap door that let's them twirl and jerk in the wind? Not enough to break their necks, but slowly suffocate them. Plus, reduce the number of appeals in many States. Texas has the right idea.

[Delta 21]

When are we going to start using pure nitrogen gas as an euthanizing agent?

[Sasparilla]

Compare with this Last Statement:

Date of Execution in Texas:

April 12, 1986

Offender:

Charles William Bass #662

Last Statement:

I deserve this. Tell everyone I said goodbye

[Newtoidaho]

If these prisons ever got smart they would raffle off lottery style to the public the opportunity to pull the switch, pull the trigger, release the guillotine, pull the lever on the hangman’s noose, etc.

They could make a lot of money, a lot of people would relish the opportunity to do the deed and put these murdering filth into the ground.

[NohSpinZone]

Charming looking fellow with the cold, dead, shark's eyes.

[hal ogen]

Who cares what this psychopath murderer said? They should have put duct on his mouth for the event...25 years ago.

[dfwgator]

“You’re a vicious bastard Eric, and uh, I’m glad your dead.”

[jch10]

He’ll escape the death penalty, IMO. Mental issues, I think.

[doggieboy]

Sounds like he didn’t want to die. Which only makes me all the happier!

[bert]

As he lived, he aged badly. He died pathetically.

Earthscum

[mdmathis6]

At 40 years of age, Moses murdered a man and buried him in the sand. Later when on he saw two of his fellow Hebrews fighting, he tried to intervene. They replied, “will you murder us like you did the Egyptian?” Moses, realizing that the murder was known as well as his being the murderer fled out of the country. That is the true story of Moses and that at the time, he had no scintilla of an idea that God would use him to lead the Hebrews out of bondage(he would have been 80 years old).

So can God forgive murderers and use them for his purposes?...well in the day of Resurrection, just ask King David on the matter of Bathsheba and what he did to her husband in order to cover up King David’s impregnating her during his adulterous affair with her!

[SoConPubbie]

It is not within my scope as I am not near the level of being a deity, but do you really think after what he did with the rape of a 14 year old and murder of two people, these sins can be forgiven? I believe it says in Proverbs: “When justice is done, it brings joy to the righteous but terror to evildoers.” I think he got what he deserved. And if you believe in the hereafter, his hell is just starting.

According to the Bible, all sins are forgivable, except for Blasphemy of the Holy Spirit.

Also, at least one of the sinners on the cross with Jesus was a murderer and I believe that Jesus forgave him in the midst of his agony.

So yes, this sinner's sins were imminently forgivable.

Whether or not he repented, the precursor for forgiveness, in that last millisecond of his life is another matter altogether.

[RKBA Democrat]

I agree. From the point of view of mercy, the death penalty is a kinder end than spending it in a cage with no hope for freedom from some hellhole.

[righttackle44]

It is not within my scope as I am not near the level of being a deity, but do you really think after what he did with the rape of a 14 year old and murder of two people, these sins can be forgiven?

They were in the process of murdering the Son of God. The crowd was a mixture of Roman soldiers and officials, and Jewish people, and Jesus' mother and followers.

He looked over them, according to Luke 23:34, and asked his Heavenly Father to forgive them because they did not understand what they were doing. Yet, they were doing it willingly, perhaps even gleefully. A group of Roman soldiers had just gambled for Jesus' clothing. In your view, apparently, Jesus was doing something impossible--asking for forgiveness for the people killing him.

Christians, I among them, believe that any sin is forgiven if the person person confesses that Jesus Lord and believes in his or her heart that God raised Him from the dead (Romans 10:9-10). One does not have to be a deity that understand the grace and forgiveness of God on all sin except one--the blasphemy of the Holy Spirit. Rape and murder are not that unforgivable sin.

So, yes, because God has extended salvation through His gracious nature, Christians can believe, and hope, that even the vilest of human beings can reach out to God in faith, believing and confessing, and receive eternal forgiveness and attain heaven as a result. (Hope, to a Christian, is a state of expectation, not a wish.)

This may drive you crazy, but there is even the possibility that Anton LeVay, leader and false prophet of the so-called church of Satan, at the last minute, according to a witness of his death, realized the horrid mistakes he had made in his life and cried out for the mercy of God. Would that simple cry resulted in his savlation? No. Again, Scripture is clear: confession that Jesus Christ is Lord and belief in one's heart that God raised him from the dead.

It doesn't take a deity to understand all of this. The only requirement is a willing tongue and a will to believe.

[Salvavida]

That is the great news about Jesus. No one, as long as they have breath, is beyond redemption. Unfortunately, it doesn’t look like the murderer humbled himself.

[castlegreyskull]

Very nicely written.

Our ways, are not like God’s.

[Kartographer]

"There's many a man alive no more value than a dead dog."
― Michael Shaara, The Killer Angels

[budj]

I’m like you.

If we had true prison reform, killers would work the rest of their days, have basic food, and their only company would be a picture of their victims. They would serve out their entire sentence.