Florida death row inmate eats last meal of bacon cheeseburger – without the bun – onion rings, strawberries and a vanilla milkshake ahead of his execution: Psychiatrist slams vigil for murderer who raped and murdered babysitter, 14, and mother of two
- Duane Owen has become the fourth Florida death row inmate executed this year, after he spent almost four decades awaiting his fate
- His attorneys argued he was mentally unfit to be executed, but a panel of psychiatrists concluded he was faking delusions
- Ahead of a vigil for the killer, one of the psychiatrists condemned the event and said his victims deserved the attention instead
One of the longest-held inmates on Florida’s death row was executed Thursday evening for the murders of two women in 1984.
Duane Owen, 62, ate a last meal of a bacon cheeseburger with no bun, onion rings and a milkshake, and he received no visitors ahead of his lethal injection at Florida State Prison.
Owen drew death sentences for the March 24, 1984, rape and stabbing attack on Karen Slattery, 14, and for the rape and killing of Georgianna Worden, 38, in May 1984, both in Palm Beach County, Florida.
Ahead of his execution, one of the psychiatrists appointed to assess whether Owen was mentally competent to be put to death condemned a vigil that was set to be held for the killer.
In a comment on social media, state witness Emily Lazarou said: ‘I do not get this. Where are the people standing in vigil for the 14 year old he stabbed to death and raped while she was dying and the mother of 2 who he bashed her head in with a hammer and raped her dying body?’
Owen (pictured in August 2006) is one of Florida’s longest-serving inmates on death row after he has spent almost four decades waiting to be executed
When he began his campaign of terror almost four decades ago, Owen first targeted Slattery, who was repeatedly stabbed and raped in a home in Delray Beach while two children in her care were sleeping.
Two months later, Worden was sleeping in her Boca Raton home when Owen struck her several times with a hammer and raped her. One of Worden’s children found her body the next morning while getting ready for school, according to court records.
Authorities said Owen also attacked two other women in Palm Beach County who survived. All four attacks occurred just before and after Owen’s 23rd birthday.
Now 62, Owen was one of 293 people on Florida’s death row and one of the longest residents there. Besides his death sentences, he also received six life sentences.
Owen was sentenced to death for the murder of Slattery in 1985, before receiving his second death sentence a year later. He has since sat on death for four decades as his fate weaved through the Florida correctional system.
Owen ate a last meal of a bacon cheeseburger with no bun, onion rings and a milkshake. He is pictured in a court hearing in December 2005
Owen carried out the murders, and two other attacks, around the time of his 23rd birthday. He is pictured in court in January 1999
The execution will be Florida’s fourth this year, after none since 2019. Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis signed each of the death warrants in the months before announcing his run for president.
Owen’s lawyers had argued that he shouldn’t be executed on grounds of insanity. The state Supreme Court rejected his latest appeal last week and the U.S. Supreme Court rejected it Wednesday.
Previously, Owen’s lawyers had argued that he is schizophrenic and suffers from delusions, leading Gov. DeSantis to enlist three psychiatrists to assess whether he was mentally competent to be executed.
The doctors, Emily Lazarou, Wade Myers and Tonia Werner, concluded that Owen was faking his mental illness and delusions to avoid the death penalty.
The psychiatrists testified that Owen’s schizophrenia is an act that he discusses when being evaluated, but he otherwise shows no signs of the illness.
Prosecutors argued that while Owen has mental health issues, nothing would preclude him from being executed because he’s aware it’s a punishment for his crimes.
And while the defense argued Owen has dementia and gender dysphoria, psychiatrists for the state said Owen has a good memory, doesn’t appear to present himself as female and that gender dysphoria doesn’t make people more aggressive or cause delusional thinking.
They said instead, Owen is sexually sadistic, according to court records.
Owen’s mother died when he was 11 and two years later his father took his own life, court records indicate. They add that he was the victim of physical and sexual abuse as a child.
Owen is set to become the fourth death row inmate put to death in Florida this year. Pictured: A gurney used by the Florida Department of Corrections
A portrait of Owen’s first victim Karen Slattery, who was murdered aged just 14
Taking to social media following news that Owen is set to receive a vigil before his execution, Lazarou commented on a Facebook post to share her disgust that the killer was receiving a send-off instead of his victims.
‘I do not get this,’ she wrote.
‘Where are the people standing in vigil for the 14 year old he stabbed to death and raped while she was dying and the mother of 2 who he bashed her head in with a hammer and raped her dying body?
‘Her kids found her the next morning. All of his victims. Who is staying in vigil for them? They didn’t have a team protecting them, because if they did, they’d still be living.
‘This man stalked them from their windows and waited for them to be alone. This makes absolutely ZERO sense to me.’
She told the Tampa Bay Times she did not believe the comment was public.
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