Wesley Ira Purkey was executed by lethal injection in 2020 at age 68 after being sentenced to death for the 1998 kidnapping, rape, and murder of 16-year-old Jennifer Long in Missouri. He was also convicted of murdering 80-year-old Mary Bales.
Before his execution, Purkey reportedly requested pecan pie as his final meal and asked prison staff to save part of it “for later.” However, an autopsy later revealed disturbing details about his death. Medical findings showed severe fluid buildup in his lungs after he was injected with pentobarbital, a condition experts compared to drowning or suffocating while still conscious.
Doctors reviewing the autopsy said the findings suggested Purkey may have experienced intense pain during the execution. Before dying, he apologized to Jennifer Long’s family, expressing regret for the suffering he caused. After the execution, Jennifer’s father reportedly said, “He needed to take his last breath, he took my daughter’s last breath.”