Murderer Brian Dorsey on Tuesday night was executed in Missouri after the rejection of multiple attempts to spare his life, including a petition to the U.S. Supreme Court.
Dorsey, 52, formerly of Jefferson City, died by lethal injection at 6:11 p.m. local time Tuesday after being sentenced to death for the December 23, 2006, murders of his cousin Sarah Bonnie and her husband Ben Bonnie.
Prosecutors said that on the day the Bonnies were killed, Dorsey called Sarah asking to borrow money to pay drug dealers who were at his apartment. Dorsey went to the Bonnies’ home that night, and after they went to bed, prosecutors said, he took a shotgun from the garage and killed both of them before sexually assaulting Sarah’s body. Police said Dorsey stole several items from the home to pay off some of his drug debt.
Dorsey’s sentence was carried out in a Missouri state prison, a spokesperson for the Missouri Department of Corrections (DOC) told Newsweek in an email.
In prewritten last words shared with Newsweek, Dorsey expressed regret over his actions and said he was at peace with his fate.
“To all of the family and loved ones I share with Sarah and to all of the surviving family and loved ones of Ben, I am truly, deeply and overwhelmingly sorry,” Dorsey wrote. “Words cannot hold the just weight of my guilt and shame. I still love you. I never wanted to hurt anyone. I am sorry I hurt them and you. To my family, friends, and all of those that tried to prevent this, I love you; I am grateful for you. I have peace in my heart in large part because of you and I thank you. To all those on ALL sides of this sentence, I carry no ill will or anger, only acceptance and understanding.”
Dorsey’s final meal was served at 11 a.m. Tuesday and included two bacon double cheeseburgers, two orders of chicken strips, two large orders of fries, and a pizza topped with sausage, pepperoni, onion, mushrooms and extra cheese, according to the DOC.
His last visit was with his spiritual adviser from 11:19 a.m. to 11:49 a.m.
Missouri Department Of Corrections
Multiple bids were launched in an effort to stay his execution, with his defense team arguing that Dorsey had been reformed in prison.
Kirk Henderson, one of Dorsey’s attorneys, said in a statement to local media that his client “has spent every day of the past 18 years trying to make up for the single act of violence.”
“Executing Brian Dorsey is a pointless cruelty, an exercise of the State’s power that serves no legitimate penological purpose,” Henderson added.
Hours before his death, the Supreme Court declined to halt the execution without any dissents noted in the decision that rejected two bids filed on Sunday.
Missouri Governor Mike Parson, a Republican, also declined to spare Dorsey’s life, issuing a statement on Monday confirming the execution would continue as scheduled.
“Brian Dorsey punished his loving family for helping him in a time of need,” Parson said in an online statement. “His cousins invited him into their home where he was surrounded by family and friends, then gave him a place to stay. Dorsey repaid them with cruelty, inhumane violence, and murder. The pain Dorsey brought to others can never be rectified, but carrying out Dorsey’s sentence according to Missouri law and the Court’s order will deliver justice and provide closure.”
Dorsey’s clemency request was backed by more than 70 current and former prison workers who had gotten to know him on death row. In the petition asking Parson to commute his sentence, the prison staffers described Dorsey as a respectful inmate and noted his good behavior, The New York Times reported.
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