Latest news with #RalphMenzies
Daily Mail
6 days ago
- Daily Mail
Utah seeking sharp shooters for execution of convicted murderer Ralph Menzies, 67, who has been on death row for 40 years and diagnosed with dementia
'Shoot me.' So said Ralph Menzies upon being sentenced to death in 1988 and asked which method of execution he preferred. Having since spent nearly four decades on Utah 's death row, the 67-year-old murder convict is now scheduled to die on September 5 the way he chose - strapped to a chair with a hood over his face and a target on his heart, then riddled with bullets. Even in Utah, the state that has carried out the vast majority of executions by firing squads, more than 15 years have passed since it last meted out the nation's rarest and most archaic-seeming form of capital punishment. Menzies is a controversial target. He needs a wheelchair to move around and an oxygen tank to breathe. He also has been diagnosed with dementia, which his lawyers say has sharply worsened since last evaluated about a year ago. They are racing the clock to convince a judge that killing a man whom they say no longer understands why he's facing a death sentence would be cruel and unusual punishment. At a hearing today, that judge will consider whether Menzies should undergo another mental evaluation before the execution. The state, meanwhile, is looking for shooters. Since his conviction in 1988, Menzies has been locked up at Utah State Correctional Facility. The judge will consider whether he should undergo another mental evaluation before the execution at a hearing today Utah corrections officials have started forming an eight-member firing squad made up of one group leader, five marksmen and two alternates in case one or two shooters change their minds about taking part. Applications aren't open to just anyone. The state requires applicants to be law enforcement officers certified by the Utah's Peace Officer Standards and Training (POST) program. That could mean a small-town cop, a Salt Lake City police sharpshooter or even a prison guard who knows Menzies from having housed and fed him during his decades on death row. Menzies was convicted in 1988 for the murder two years earlier of Maurine Hunsaker, a 26-year-old gas station attendant whom he kidnapped and tied to a tree before slitting her throat. Her son has waited nearly four decades for the sound of gunshots aimed at her killer. Manzies' life would be over in 'mere seconds,' Matt Hunsaker told - likely far quicker than it took his mother to bleed to death. 'It's time - long past time - to get it over with,' he said. BLOOD ATONEMENT Utah is one of five states along with Idaho, Mississippi, Oklahoma and South Carolina that authorize firing squads as a form of execution. About 42 percent of residents there identify as members of the Church of Latter Day Saints (LDS), or Mormon. Deborah Denno, a Fordham School of Law criminologist who researches execution methods, notes that the faith long taught that in order to atone for an eternal sin, the sinner should be killed in a way that sheds their blood as a sacrificial offering. Although the church has officially repudiated that doctrine, she and other criminal justice experts say blood atonement is still steeped in Mormon culture. That, as they tell it, explains why, in Utah's long history of firing squads, the state has never struggled to find volunteers willing to pull the trigger. 'It is part of Utah's history, the ethos there,' Denno said. Utah corrections officials aren't advertising to fill the eight spots on Manzies' firing squad. They're relying instead on their relationships with local law enforcement agencies. 'Honestly, we don't have to put the word out because it's known,' spokesman Glen Mills said. Although Mills wouldn't specify how many people have applied since a judge issued Menzies' execution warrant on July 9, he did say, 'We've had interest.' Deborah Denno, a Fordham School of Law criminologist who researches execution methods, said Utah's somewhat controversial preference for a firing squad traces back to Mormon roots as blood atonement is still steeped in the culture He noted it hasn't been decided whether members of Menzies' firing squad would be paid, and, if so, how much. Applicants first will be tested for their shooting skills. They're required to hit a small target the size of the one that will be pinned above Menzies' heart from a distance of at least 21 feet. Failure to do so will disqualify them. They'll then undergo psychological evaluations. 'We will want to make sure that there are people who are, first of all, mentally prepared to participate in this type of assignment, as you can imagine, it shouldn't be taken lightly,' Jared Garcia, the department's executive director, told reporters last week. Those chosen for Menzies' squad will have to attend at least three shooting practices and run-throughs similar to those organized before Utah's last execution - that of rape and murder convict Taberon Honie last summer by lethal injection, the state's primary method of carrying out the death penalty. 'It's really important that we have everything down and handle it in a professional manner,' Mills said. Under state policy, only four of Menzies' shooters would shoot live rounds, with the fifth shooting non-lethal wax bullets. None would be told beforehand which type of cartridges had been loathed into their state-owned 30-caliber rifle, the kind used to hunt deer in Utah. Blank rounds have long been used by firing squads as a way to 'diffuse responsibility,' easing shooters' psychological burden by allowing each to rationalize that they may not have caused the death. In her research, Denno hasn't been able to interview any firing squad members because their names are withheld from the public and faces hidden behind firing walls, as would be the case with Menzies' execution. Still, she said the effects of taking part in a firing squad can be similar to soldiers fighting in combat situations. Shooters can experience long-term distress including insomnia, panic attacks and suicidal thoughts after killing a convict. 'MY GOD! THEY'VE MISSED IT!' If his execution warrant is carried out, Menzies' would be the third prisoner in the U.S. to face a firing squad this year after a 15-year spell with no executions by shooting anywhere in the country. Touted by proponents as swift and relatively painless, the method nevertheless has a history of gory mistakes when shooters miss their target, according to the Death Penalty Information Center. Wallace Wilkerson, convicted of killing a man during a cribbage game, showed up drunk and with a lit cigar in hand to his execution in Utah in 1879. He reportedly shifted slightly just before the firing squad shot and missed his heart. One witness said he fell to the ground, groaning, 'My God! They've missed it,' before dying 15 excruciating minutes later. Likewise, during the execution of Eliseo Mares in 1951, also in Utah, firing squad members all shot into the right, rather than left side of his chest, missing his heart and forcing him to endure an agonizing death as he slowly bled out. By far Utah's best-known execution by firing squad was that of Gary Gilmore, who admitted to killing a gas station manager and motel manager, both in Utah, on two consecutive nights in 1976. His life and 1977 execution were the subject of the 1982 TV movie starring Tommy Lee Jones based on Norman Mailer's best-selling book, The Executioner's Song. Gilmore's story gained resonance at the time because he was the first person executed in the US after an almost ten-year federal moratorium on capital punishment. From 1976, when the US Supreme Court reimplemented the death penalty, through 2024, two other US convicts besides Gilmore were put to death via firing squad, both in Utah. John Albert Taylor chose the method for his 1996 execution, as did Ronnie Lee Gardner for his in 2010. Gardner cited his 'Mormon heritage' - meaning blood atonement - as his reason for picking the bloody way to die. 'BETTER' EXECUTION METHODS? A rise in gun-related street violence, police killings and suicides in the late 20th century caused firing squads to fall from favor as an acceptable way to carry out death sentences. The method was too violent, argued policy makers looking for a seemingly more civilized way to get the job done. Lethal injection - a combination that usually includes a sedative, a paralytic, and a drug to stop the heart - became the method of choice among most states that still authorized the death penalty after the moratorium was lifted. 'Most people want to think that the person is being executed in a peaceful way, and they're not going to feel pain and won't be terrified,' Denno said. But, as with firing squads and other death penalty methods such as lethal gas and electrocution, many executions by lethal injections have been botched. The drugs can cause fluid to build up in the lungs, creating a feeling that one is suffocating or drowning. They can also trigger other kinds of prolonged suffering while witnesses look on, horrified. Some families have said the gruesome sight of watching their loved ones' killers writhe in pain retraumatized them. Trying to distance themselves from the string of hideous blunders, several drug companies stopped selling the components needed for lethal injections, leading states once again on the morbid search for a 'better' execution method. A string of law journal articles in the 2010s encouraged legal scholars and corrections departments to reconsider firing squads. Momentum grew in 2017 when Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor wrote in an opinion that, 'In addition to being near instant, death by shooting may also be comparatively painless.' Denno also has embraced the idea, saying death by firing squad stands out as the 'least inhumane' method of execution. Death penalty opponents dispute that position, arguing that the legal research it's based on ignores medical research and common sense - that death by shooting is excruciatingly painful. Even if bullets directly hit prisoners' hearts, medical experts have said they undergo at least 30 seconds of agony. As defense lawyers and people seeking to abolish the death penalty say, there is no such thing as a clean execution. In 2015, Utah passed a law allowing for execution by firing squad if the drugs used in lethal injections are unavailable. Other states have followed in the years since. Idaho whose population is about 26 percent Mormon, in March became the only state where death by firing squad is the primary form of execution. After a long string of botched executions by lethal injection, South Carolina used a firing squad to execute murder convict Brad Sigmon on March 7 this year and Mikal Mahdi, also a convicted murderer, on April 11. An autopsy showed that none of the bullets hit Mahdi's heart directly, as was supposed to happen. Instead, the wounds damaged his liver and other internal organs and allowed his heart to keep beating. Pathologists said the injuries likely caused him pain and suffering while he was still conscious. Given how close Mahdi's shooters were to him, Denno said it seems that they 'intentionally botched' his execution, potentially setting back to states' movement to return to death by gunfire. For that reason, she added, 'I'm surprised that Utah is going ahead' with Menzies.
ABC News
10-07-2025
- ABC News
Execution by firing squad for Utah killer Ralph Menzies as court told his dementia is worsening
A Utah judge has set an execution date for a man with dementia who has been on death row for 37 years, despite appeals from his legal team. Ralph Leroy Menzies, is set to be executed by firing squad on September 5 for abducting and killing a mother of three in 1986. The 67-year-old's lawyers have filed multiple appeals, arguing his condition is worsening and he cannot understand his case. In the US, both state and federal law require that death row inmates have an understanding of why they are being executed. Despite this, a judge has ruled Menzies "consistently and rationally" understands why he is facing execution even with his recent cognitive decline. While the date is set, it could be further delayed when later this month Judge Matthew Bates will decide whether the prisoner should undergo another mental evaluation. The case highlights the use of and the rules and regulations surrounding capital punishment in the US which is still legal in more than 20 states as well as federally. Here's what to know about this case. In 1986, 26-year-old Maurine Hunsaker, was abducted by Menzies from a convenience store where she worked in the Salt Lake City suburb of Kearns. She was later found strangled and her throat cut about 25 kilometres away at a picnic area in Big Cottonwood Canyon. Menzies had Hunsaker's wallet and several other belongings when he was jailed on unrelated matters. He was convicted of first-degree murder and other crimes in 1988. When given a choice decades ago, Menzies selected a firing squad as his method of execution. He would become only the sixth US prisoner executed by firing squad since 1977. But after more than four decades, lawyers for Menzies filed multiple appeals that delayed his death sentence, which had been scheduled at least twice before it was pushed back. In the US, capital punishment, also known as the death penalty, is legal for certain crimes in 27 states. Across the US, there are 10 scheduled executions for the rest of 2025 in Florida, Tennessee, Utah, Texas, Indiana, Montana and Alaska. Twenty-five men have been put to death in the US this year. There are several methods of capital punishment in the US and they can vary by state. It is primarily used for those convicted of first-degree murder. Menzies and other Utah death row inmates sentenced before May 2004 were given a choice between firing squad and lethal injection. For inmates sentenced in the state after that date, lethal injection is the default method unless the drugs are unavailable. In the US, the death penalty is far more common in state cases than federal. Former president Joe Biden placed a moratorium on federal executions for all cases except terrorism and hate-motivated mass murder during his term. "I am more convinced than ever that we must stop the use of the death penalty at the federal level," he said late in his presidency. When Donald Trump took office again, he made "restoring the death penalty" an early priority. In January, he signed an executive order to "counteract the politicians and judges who subvert the law by obstructing and preventing the execution of capital sentences". Lawyers for Menzies say his dementia has gotten so severe that he uses a wheelchair, is dependent on oxygen and cannot understand his legal case. They have petitioned the court for a reassessment, but Judge Bates said that the pending appeal was not a basis to stop him from setting a date. He did schedule a July 23 hearing to evaluate a competency petition. "We remain hopeful that the courts or the clemency board will recognise the profound inhumanity of executing a man who is experiencing steep cognitive decline and significant memory loss," said Lindsey Layer, a lawyer for Menzies. "Taking the life of someone with a terminal illness who is no longer a threat to anyone and whose mind and identity have been overtaken by dementia serves neither justice nor human decency." The Utah Attorney General's Office has "full confidence" in Judge Bates's decision, Assistant Attorney General Daniel Boyer said. The US Supreme Court has spared prisoners with dementia from execution before. In 2019, Vernon Madison, an Alabama man who had killed a police officer, had his execution stayed by the government and died in prison at the age of 69. If a defendant cannot understand why they are being put to death, the high court said, then an execution is not carrying out the retribution that society is seeking. For Hunsaker's son Matt, who was 10 years old when his mother was killed, it has been "hard to swallow that it's taken this long" to get justice. "You issue the warrant today, you start a process for our family," he told the judge on Wednesday. "It puts everybody on the clock. We've now introduced another generation of my mom, and we still don't have justice served." ABC/Wires
Washington Post
10-07-2025
- Washington Post
Utah judge schedules execution by firing squad for a man with dementia
SALT LAKE CITY — A Utah judge on Wednesday set an execution date for a man with dementia who has been on death row for 37 years , even as his lawyers file appeals and argue his condition is worsening. Ralph Leroy Menzies, 67, is set to be executed Sept. 5 for abducting and killing Utah mother of three Maurine Hunsaker in 1986. When given a choice decades ago, Menzies selected a firing squad as his method of execution. He would become only the sixth U.S. prisoner executed by firing squad since 1977. Judge Matthew Bates signed the death warrant a month after he ruled Menzies 'consistently and rationally' understands why he is facing execution despite recent cognitive decline. Attorneys for Menzies have petitioned the court for a reassessment, but Bates said Wednesday that the pending appeal was not a basis to stop him from setting a date. Bates did, however, schedule a July 23 hearing to evaluate the new competency petition. Menzies' attorneys say his dementia has gotten so severe that he uses a wheelchair, is dependent on oxygen and cannot understand his legal case. 'We remain hopeful that the courts or the clemency board will recognize the profound inhumanity of executing a man who is experiencing steep cognitive decline and significant memory loss,' said Lindsey Layer, an attorney for Menzies. 'Taking the life of someone with a terminal illness who is no longer a threat to anyone and whose mind and identity have been overtaken by dementia serves neither justice nor human decency.' The Utah Attorney General's Office has 'full confidence' in the judge's decision, Assistant Attorney General Daniel Boyer said. The U.S. Supreme Court has at times spared prisoners with dementia from execution, including an Alabama man in 2019 who had killed a police officer. If a defendant cannot understand why they are being put to death, the high court said, then an execution is not carrying out the retribution that society is seeking. For Hunsaker's son Matt, who was 10 years old when his mother was killed, it has been 'hard to swallow that it's taken this long' to get justice. 'You issue the warrant today, you start a process for our family,' he told the judge Wednesday. 'It puts everybody on the clock. We've now introduced another generation of my mom, and we still don't have justice served.' Hunsaker, 26, was abducted by Menzies from a convenience store where she worked in the Salt Lake City suburb of Kearns. She was later found strangled and her throat cut about 16 miles (25 kilometers) away at a picnic area in Big Cottonwood Canyon. Menzies had Hunsaker's wallet and several other belongings when he was jailed on unrelated matters. He was convicted of first-degree murder and other crimes in 1988. Over nearly four decades, attorneys for Menzies filed multiple appeals that delayed his death sentence, which had been scheduled at least twice before it was pushed back. He and other Utah death row inmates sentenced before May 2004 were given a choice between firing squad and lethal injection. For inmates sentenced in the state after that date, lethal injection is the default method unless the drugs are unavailable. Utah last executed prisoners by firing squad in 2010, and South Carolina used the method on two men this year. Only three other states — Idaho, Mississippi and Oklahoma — allow firing squad executions. Menzies is among 10 people scheduled to be put to death in seven states during the remainder of 2025. Twenty-five men in the U.S. have died by court-ordered execution so far this year.
The Independent
09-07-2025
- The Independent
Utah judge schedules execution by firing squad for a man with dementia
A Utah judge on Wednesday set an execution date for a man with dementia who has been on death row for 37 years, even as his lawyers file appeals and argue his condition is worsening. Ralph Leroy Menzies, 67, is set to be executed Sept. 5 for abducting and killing Utah mother of three Maurine Hunsaker in 1986. When given a choice decades ago, Menzies selected a firing squad as his method of execution. He would become only the sixth U.S. prisoner executed by firing squad since 1977. Judge Matthew Bates signed the death warrant a month after he ruled Menzies 'consistently and rationally' understands why he is facing execution despite recent cognitive decline. Attorneys for Menzies have petitioned the court for a reassessment, but Bates said Wednesday that the pending appeal was not a basis to stop him from setting a date. Bates did, however, schedule a July 23 hearing to evaluate the new competency petition. Menzies' attorneys say his dementia has gotten so severe that he uses a wheelchair, is dependent on oxygen and cannot understand his legal case. 'We remain hopeful that the courts or the clemency board will recognize the profound inhumanity of executing a man who is experiencing steep cognitive decline and significant memory loss,' said Lindsey Layer, an attorney for Menzies. 'Taking the life of someone with a terminal illness who is no longer a threat to anyone and whose mind and identity have been overtaken by dementia serves neither justice nor human decency.' The Utah Attorney General's Office has 'full confidence' in the judge's decision, Assistant Attorney General Daniel Boyer said. The U.S. Supreme Court has at times spared prisoners with dementia from execution, including an Alabama man in 2019 who had killed a police officer. If a defendant cannot understand why they are being put to death, the high court said, then an execution is not carrying out the retribution that society is seeking. For Hunsaker's son Matt, who was 10 years old when his mother was killed, it has been 'hard to swallow that it's taken this long' to get justice. 'You issue the warrant today, you start a process for our family,' he told the judge Wednesday. 'It puts everybody on the clock. We've now introduced another generation of my mom, and we still don't have justice served.' Hunsaker, 26, was abducted by Menzies from a convenience store where she worked in the Salt Lake City suburb of Kearns. She was later found strangled and her throat cut about 16 miles (25 kilometers) away at a picnic area in Big Cottonwood Canyon. Menzies had Hunsaker's wallet and several other belongings when he was jailed on unrelated matters. He was convicted of first-degree murder and other crimes in 1988. Over nearly four decades, attorneys for Menzies filed multiple appeals that delayed his death sentence, which had been scheduled at least twice before it was pushed back. He and other Utah death row inmates sentenced before May 2004 were given a choice between firing squad and lethal injection. For inmates sentenced in the state after that date, lethal injection is the default method unless the drugs are unavailable. Utah last executed prisoners by firing squad in 2010, and South Carolina used the method on two men this year. Only three other states — Idaho, Mississippi and Oklahoma — allow firing squad executions. Menzies is among 10 people scheduled to be put to death in seven states during the remainder of 2025. Twenty-five men in the U.S. have died by court-ordered execution so far this year.
Associated Press
09-07-2025
- Associated Press
Utah judge schedules execution by firing squad for a man with dementia
SALT LAKE CITY (AP) — A Utah judge on Wednesday set an execution date for a man with dementia who has been on death row for 37 years , even as his lawyers file appeals and argue his condition is worsening. Ralph Leroy Menzies, 67, is set to be executed Sept. 5 for abducting and killing Utah mother of three Maurine Hunsaker in 1986. When given a choice decades ago, Menzies selected a firing squad as his method of execution. He would become only the sixth U.S. prisoner executed by firing squad since 1977. Judge Matthew Bates signed the death warrant a month after he ruled Menzies 'consistently and rationally' understands why he is facing execution despite recent cognitive decline. Attorneys for Menzies have petitioned the court for a reassessment, but Bates said Wednesday that the pending appeal was not a basis to stop him from setting a date. Bates did, however, schedule a July 23 hearing to evaluate the new competency petition. Menzies' attorneys say his dementia has gotten so severe that he uses a wheelchair, is dependent on oxygen and cannot understand his legal case. 'We remain hopeful that the courts or the clemency board will recognize the profound inhumanity of executing a man who is experiencing steep cognitive decline and significant memory loss,' said Lindsey Layer, an attorney for Menzies. 'Taking the life of someone with a terminal illness who is no longer a threat to anyone and whose mind and identity have been overtaken by dementia serves neither justice nor human decency.' The Utah Attorney General's Office has 'full confidence' in the judge's decision, Assistant Attorney General Daniel Boyer said. The U.S. Supreme Court has at times spared prisoners with dementia from execution, including an Alabama man in 2019 who had killed a police officer. If a defendant cannot understand why they are being put to death, the high court said, then an execution is not carrying out the retribution that society is seeking. For Hunsaker's son Matt, who was 10 years old when his mother was killed, it has been 'hard to swallow that it's taken this long' to get justice. 'You issue the warrant today, you start a process for our family,' he told the judge Wednesday. 'It puts everybody on the clock. We've now introduced another generation of my mom, and we still don't have justice served.' Hunsaker, 26, was abducted by Menzies from a convenience store where she worked in the Salt Lake City suburb of Kearns. She was later found strangled and her throat cut about 16 miles (25 kilometers) away at a picnic area in Big Cottonwood Canyon. Menzies had Hunsaker's wallet and several other belongings when he was jailed on unrelated matters. He was convicted of first-degree murder and other crimes in 1988. Over nearly four decades, attorneys for Menzies filed multiple appeals that delayed his death sentence, which had been scheduled at least twice before it was pushed back. He and other Utah death row inmates sentenced before May 2004 were given a choice between firing squad and lethal injection. For inmates sentenced in the state after that date, lethal injection is the default method unless the drugs are unavailable. Utah last executed prisoners by firing squad in 2010, and South Carolina used the method on two men this year. Only three other states — Idaho, Mississippi and Oklahoma — allow firing squad executions. Menzies is among 10 people scheduled to be put to death in seven states during the remainder of 2025. Twenty-five men in the U.S. have died by court-ordered execution so far this year.
