A condemned prisoner's last meal is a customary ritual preceding execution. In many countries, the prisoner may, within reason, select what the last meal will be.

Contemporary restrictions in the United States

Contrary to the common belief that all last meal requests, regardless of their complexity, must be fulfilled, various restrictions are in place over what can be requested.

In the United States, most states give the meal a day or two before the actual execution and now use the euphemism "special meal". Alcohol and tobacco are usually, but not always, denied. Unorthodox or unavailable requests can be replaced with similar substitutes. Some states place tight restrictions. Sometimes, a prisoner asks to share the last meal with another inmate (as Francis Crowley did with John Resko in 1932) or has the meal distributed among other inmates (as requested by Raymond Fernandez in 1951).

In Florida, the food for the last meal must be purchased locally and the cost is limited to $40. In Oklahoma, the cost is limited to $25. In Louisiana, the prison warden traditionally joins the condemned prisoner for the last meal.[citation needed] On one occasion, the warden paid for an inmate's lobster dinner.

In September 2011, Texas abolished its long-standing tradition of customized last meals after Lawrence Brewer requested a large, expensive meal and refused to eat any of it. Consequently, condemned prisoners in Texas are now restricted to the standard meal provided in the Huntsville Unit cafeteria on the day of their execution.

Documented last meal requests

See also

Further reading

  • Treadwell, Ty and Vernon, Michelle (2011) Last Suppers: Famous Final Meals from Death Row
  • Van Dülmen, Richard (1990). Theatre of Horror : Crime and Punishment in Early Modern Germany. Cambridge. ISBN 978-0-7456-0616-3.
  • Foucault, Michel (1977). . Knopf Doubleday Publishing. ISBN 978-0-679-75255-4.
  • Von Hentig, Hans (1973). Punishment – Its Origin, Purpose, and Psychology. Patterson Smith. ISBN 978-0-87585-147-1.
  • Osler, Mark (February 2009). "Ch. 7: Last Meal / Last Supper". . Nashville, Tennessee: Abingdon Press. pp. –67. ISBN 978-0-687-64756-9.
  • Jones, Michael Owen (2014). "Dining on Death Row: Last Meals and the Crutch of Ritual". The Journal of American Folklore. 127 (503): 3–26. doi:. JSTOR . S2CID .

External links

  • Greene, Bob (12 June 2001). . Jewish World Review. Retrieved on 2007-08-17.
  • Karon, Tony (10 August 2000). . TIME Magazine. Retrieved on 2007-08-17.
  • Stein, Joel (18 October 2007). . TIME Magazine. Retrieved on 2007-11-11.
  • . Portraits of Last Requests. Retrieved on 2010-09-17.
  • . Texas Department of Criminal Justice (12 September 2003). Archived from on 2003-12-02. Retrieved on 2011-03-17.
  • 12 February 2017 at the Wayback Machine. rotten dot com. Retrieved on 2007-08-17.
  • Seattle Weekly (18 June 2010). Retrieved on 2010-06-24.
  • . Dead Man Eating. Retrieved on 2007-08-17.
  • 17 November 2011 at the Wayback Machine. Zombie Popcorn (9 October 2008) Retrieved on 2010-09-29.