Stephen Stanko, a 57-year-old man from South Carolina, was executed by lethal injection on Friday, marking the state’s sixth execution in nine months. Stanko had been sentenced to death twice for two separate murders: he shot a friend in Horry County in 2005 and had previously killed his live-in girlfriend, brutally attacking her daughter as well. During his final statement, which lasted 3.5 minutes, Stanko apologized to his victims and requested not to be judged solely by his worst actions.
The execution process involved administering pentobarbital, a powerful sedative. After beginning the injection, Stanko exhibited signs of distress, appearing to say words and turning towards the victims’ families before breathing rapidly and then stopping. The process took about 28 minutes in total. Initially, Stanko considered opting for execution by firing squad, like two previous inmates, but chose lethal injection after concerns about the firing squad’s method of execution surfaced.
Stanko’s final plea for clemency was rejected by South Carolina Governor Henry McMaster minutes before the execution commenced, upholding a trend where no governor has spared a death row inmate in 48 cases. This execution is part of a broader wave of capital punishment across the country, with inmates executed in Florida and Alabama earlier in the week, and another execution occurring in Oklahoma shortly thereafter. Stanko’s case underscores ongoing debates about the use and methods of lethal injection amid growing scrutiny and legal challenges regarding their implementation.
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