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Double-murderer Donald Grant has been put to death despite an effort to have him granted clemency.
Stories of botched executions left Grant "terrified" of his impending lethal injection at 10am local time on Thursday and he was pronounced dead 16 minutes later.
Earlier today, Grant ordered a Chinese meal consisting of sesame chicken, three egg rolls, prawn fried rice and a large apple fritter.
The double murderer added an alternative of three pints of strawberry ice cream in case his preferred dessert wasn’t available.
It comes after the 46-year-old was convicted of murdering two hotel employees during a robbery in Del City, Oklahoma, in 2001. The victims were 29-year-old Brenda McElyea and 43-year-old Felicia Suzette Smith.
After his arrest, Grant admitted he decided "not to leave any witnesses" as he robbed the hotel for money in an attempt to get his girlfriend out of jail, The Oklahoman reported.
News reporters were invited to a media room to witness the execution during which a spiritual guide stood at Grant's feet.
Grant could be seen talking to family members during the process, and allegedly said "hold the fort down" to them.
Other disjointed phrases included: "Yo I got this," "It's nothing" and "I've done this before."
Much of what he said before his microphone was switched off at 10:03am was unintelligible according to witnesses who said Grant sounded as though he was chanting.
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The killer shed a single tear in his final moments and became unconscious at 10:08am, one witness reported.
In a statement to the media, Shirl Pilcher, a sister of Grant's victim Brenda McElyea said: "Although Donald Grant's execution does not bring Brenda back, it allows us all to finally move forward knowing that justice was served."
There had been calls to halt his execution on the grounds that lethal injection is "unconstitutional," but on Monday, January 24, 2022, a panel of three judges in the 10th US Circuit Court of Appeals denied the motion to postpone his death.
Grant and another man Gilbert Postelle have spent the last 11 and 17 years respectively waiting to be executed for their crimes.
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Postelle murdered four people in 2005 who he believed caused his dad's injuries in a motorcycle accident.
Their lawyers have launched a case against the prison arguing that the method used to end lives on death row carries a "substantial risk of severe pain and suffering".
In a meeting held on Monday, attorney Jim Stronski told the judge that bullets fired at a prisoner's heart may be gruesome to look at but it will be quicker and pretty much pain-free.
Double murderer Grant's legal team claims the lag who has been locked up since admitting to his crimes in 2001, is severely mentally ill and shouldn’t be executed, Fox 23 News reported.
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His execution today was the first in the United States this year. The state of Alabama also planned to hold an execution today, but a stay order was given by an appeals court.
His attorney Susan Otto said: "Mr Grant is well aware he’s going to be executed. He does not wish to be executed. He is afraid, and he understands that he may die like John Grant. And he’s terrified of that."
The Oklahoma Pardon and Parole Board denied clemency for Grant and Postelle in late 2021.
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