In a recent development, the man convicted of the heinous rape and murder of a University of Oklahoma dance student back in 1996 faced his final moments during an execution on a Thursday morning.
Anthony Sanchez, aged 44, met his fate at 10:19 a.m. CDT at the Oklahoma State Penitentiary in McAlester after undergoing a three-drug injection. Notably, earlier this year, he declined the opportunity for a clemency hearing.
Proclaiming his innocence, Sanchez's last words, while strapped to a gurney in the death chamber, were, "I'm innocent. I didn't kill nobody."
The case involved the tragic murder of Juli Busken, a 21-year-old native of Arkansas. She had just completed her final semester at the University of Oklahoma when she was abducted from the parking lot of her Norman apartment complex on December 20, 1996.
The case remained unsolved for several years until DNA evidence from the crime scene eventually matched Sanchez, who was already serving time for burglary.
Sanchez's attorney, Eric Allen from Columbus, Ohio, made a last-ditch effort by requesting a stay of execution in federal court, citing the need for more time to review boxes of evidence in the case. However, the U.S. Supreme Court rejected this request on Thursday.
Tragically, Busken's lifeless body was discovered bound, raped, and fatally shot near a lake in southeast Oklahoma City. She had a background as a ballerina and had graced the stage in numerous dance performances during her time at OU.
Her memory lives on at the campus through a dance scholarship established in her honor at the College of Fine Arts.
The wheels of justice turned as Sanchez was convicted and sentenced to death in 2006 when DNA evidence, specifically sperm found on Busken's clothing at the crime scene, was conclusively linked to him.
Sanchez had vehemently maintained his innocence throughout, even reiterating his claims in a phone call to the Associated Press earlier this year from death row. He asserted that the DNA evidence was fabricated and not his own, saying, "That is fabricated DNA. That is false DNA. That is not my DNA. I've been saying that since day one."
As per information from the Oklahoma Department of Corrections, relayed by a local KOKH reporter, Sanchez's requested last meal featured chicken fried steak, fried okra, mashed potatoes and gravy, a roll, sweet iced tea, and apple pie with vanilla ice cream.
Remarkably, no family members of Busken were present at the execution, but the state's Attorney General, Gentner Drummond, noted that he had been in regular contact with them in the months leading up to the execution.
Drummond acknowledged, "Juli was murdered 26 years, nine months, and one day ago. The family has found closure and peace."
In another news in Carroll County, Georgia, a disturbing incident unfolded when a 14-year-old boy was reportedly subjected to molestation by a woman named McKenzie Nicole Cook. Shockingly, after being arrested once, Cook repeated the offense within a week. See detailed story here
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