Death row inmate suffered ‘excruciating’ execution after making brutal ‘mistake’ with last meal

Wesley Ira Purkey was a convicted murderer who spent 16 years on death row before being executed in 2020 at the age of 68. His crimes were particularly horrific and left a deep scar on the families involved.

In 1998, Purkey abducted 16-year-old Jennifer Long, who was last seen at her high school in Kansas City, Missouri. He lured her into his vehicle, took her to his home, and murdered her.

He reportedly stabbed her, dismembered her with a chainsaw, and burned her body in a fireplace before dumping what was left into a septic pond. Tragically, Jennifer’s remains have never been recovered.

Purkey didn’t stop there. He also murdered 80-year-old Mary Bales by beating her with a claw hammer.

His attempt to burn her body was interrupted when neighbors saw what he was doing and alerted authorities. He was arrested and eventually found guilty of both murders. In January 2004, he was sentenced to death.

By the time of his execution in July 2020, Purkey was suffering from dementia. This raised serious concerns about whether he fully understood what was happening to him. One strange moment that highlighted this was his request for pecan pie as his last meal. He asked to save it for later—possibly not realizing that there would be no “later” for him.

His execution was supposed to be quick and painless, but medical experts now believe that wasn’t the case. According to Dr. Gail Van Norman, Purkey’s autopsy revealed that he suffered from severe pulmonary edema—his lungs were filled with fluid, including frothy liquid in his airways.

This would have made it feel like he was drowning while still conscious. The drug used in his lethal injection, pentobarbital, is believed to cause this kind of suffering in many cases.

Van Norman described it as one of the most painful ways to die, even though it’s presented as a humane method.

Purkey did express some remorse before his death. In his final moments, he apologized to the family of Jennifer Long and to his own daughter.

He said he was sorry for all the pain he had caused and criticized the process, calling it a “sanitized murder” that, in his view, served no real purpose.

His story has reignited debate around the death penalty, especially when it involves inmates with mental illnesses and the true nature of so-called humane executions.