For decades, one of the oldest traditions in the American justice system was granting a final meal of choice to inmates facing execution. In Texas, a state known for carrying out the highest number of executions in the country, this practice was followed for more than 80 years. But all of that changed in 2011, and it all came down to one man.
That year, Texas officially ended the tradition of allowing final meal requests for death row inmates. The move was sparked by public outrage and political backlash after Lawrence Russell Brewer, a convicted murderer and white supremacist, made headlines for refusing to eat his extravagant last meal, a gesture many saw as both disrespectful and manipulative.
Singaporean death row inmate, Nagaenthran K. Dharmalingam eats his last meal before execution pic.twitter.com/1g7RnqYdZi
— non aesthetic things (@PicturesFoIder) March 10, 2024
Brewer had been sentenced to death for his role in one of the most horrific hate crimes, the 1998 killing of James Byrd Jr., a 49-year-old Black man from Jasper, Texas. Along with two accomplices, Shawn Berry and John King, Brewer offered Byrd a ride home. Instead of taking him safely to his destination, the three men brutally beat him, tied him to the back of a pickup truck, and dragged him for over three miles along a rural road.
The details of the crime were shocking. According to the coroner, Byrd was likely conscious for much of the ordeal, only dying after his head and right arm were severed by a roadside culvert. The perpetrators then left what was left of Byrd’s body in front of a Black cemetery.
After years of legal proceedings, Brewer was sentenced to die by lethal injection. But what happened hours before his execution would go on to reshape prison policy in Texas.
On June 7, 1998 James Byrd accepted a ride home from Shawn Berry, Lawrence Brewer and John King in Jasper Texas.
Rather than bringing Byrd home, the three men transported him to a desolate county road outside of town, subjecting him to severe beatings and degrading acts such as… pic.twitter.com/9FxPVIxnE6
— Morbid Knowledge (@Morbidful) February 20, 2024
When asked for his final meal, Brewer made an over-the-top request. Two chicken fried steaks, a triple meat bacon cheeseburger, fried okra, a pound of barbecue, fajitas, a meat lover’s pizza, a pint of ice cream, peanut butter fudge, and three root beers.
Prison staff went to great lengths to fulfill his order. But when the food was served, Brewer stunned guards by refusing to eat any of it. He reportedly said he was “not hungry anymore.”
The move struck a nerve with state officials, especially considering the cruelty of Brewer’s crime and the waste of taxpayer resources. It didn’t take long for Texas State Senator John Whitmire to take action. As chairman of the Senate Criminal Justice Committee at the time, Whitmire didn’t hold back in expressing his disgust.
“He never gave his victim an opportunity for a last meal,” he told reporters. “Why in the world are you going to treat him like a celebrity two hours before you execute him?”
Whitmire pushed forward a policy change that took effect immediately. “It’s wrong to treat a vicious murderer in this fashion,” he added. “Let him eat the same meal on the chow line as the others.”
The decision sparked a nationwide debate. While some viewed it as a reasonable consequence of Brewer’s actions, others questioned whether abolishing final meals was a step too far. Well, for sure it is not far considering the horrifying crime he committed. There shouldn’t be any place of humanity or kindness for such criminals.
Feb 25, 1999 White supremacist John King, 1 of 3 white men who chained James Byrd to a pickup, dragged him along a Texas road, decapitating him, was sentenced to death. 1st white Texan executed for killing a Black person since slavery. Lawrence Brewer was executed 2011 that murder pic.twitter.com/3Yue6OgRgy
— Maurice W (@iamMauriceW) February 25, 2023
The rule remains in place. Since 2011, Texas death row inmates have no longer been allowed to request a special final meal. Instead, they are served the same food as other prisoners that day, no exceptions.
Brewer was executed by lethal injection on September 21, 2011, just hours after refusing his massive meal.
