Triple murderer's final meal before being executed by firing squad

Stephen Bryant. Credit: South Carolina Department of Corrections

South Carolina triple murderer Stephen Bryant has been executed by a firing squad. The murderer, who pleaded guilty to his crimes in 2008, chose the firing squad over lethal injection. Now, details on his last meal has been revealed.

Stephen Bryant was pronounced dead at 6.05 pm local time on Friday, November 14, at the Broad River Correctional Institution in Columbia, South Carolina. The triple murderer had requested that he be executed by a firing squad over lethal injection or electrocution, all three being legal in the state.

In the end, three prison employees carried out the execution with 10 witnesses present, including several family members of the victims, per AP.

On October 9, 2004, Bryant killed his first victim, his 36-year-old coworker Clifron Gainey, and continued on to burglarize his home, the South Carolina Daily Gazette reported. Two days later, he killed William Tietjen, 62, in his home. He left notes written in blood on the 62-year-old’s wall.

One read, Victim number four in two weeks, catch me if you can,” per The Post. Bryant also taunted the victim’s wife and daughter as he said the man was “dead” when answering William’s phone.

Only two days later, Bryant fatally shot his third victim. 35-year-old Chris Burges was killed when meeting Stephen Bryant at a convenience store.

Triple murderer Stephen Bryant executed – final meal revealed

Bryant pleaded guilty to his crimes in 2008. His lawyers argued that his client had tried seeking help for his mental health issues prior to the murders as he had been kept reliving sexual abuse from his childhood, per court records.

Bryant chose opted for mixed seafood stir fry, fried fish over rice, egg rolls, stuffed shrimp, two candy bars, and German chocolate cake for his final meal, per AP.

After he was executed – the third by a firing squad i South Carolina this year – Stephen Bryant’s attorney, Bo King, shared his clients final wish; No one should be rejected from accesing mental health support because they can’t afford to pay, something Bryant said happened to him,

“That is consistent with the man we knew, who showed grace and courage in forgiving his family and great love for those in and outside of his prison,” King said in the statement, per the Daily Gazette. “We will remember his unlikely friendships, his fierce protectiveness, and his love for nature, the water, and the world. We will miss him.”