Las Vegas Sun

March 28, 2024

Killer makes final requests

CARSON CITY -- Las Vegas killer Lawrence Colwell wants to be well-groomed when he goes to his execution March 26 at the Nevada State Prison.

Colwell has asked to receive a haircut and to have his teeth cleaned before he is put to death by lethal injection, prison spokesman Fritz Schlottman said.

The inmate has been placed in protective custody in a single-bed cell. The section he is in has its own exercise yard.

Schlottman described Colwell's demeanor as "matter-of-fact." Colwell has declined further court appeals and said he wants to be executed. But he has left the door open to renew his appeal and get a stay of execution from the federal court.

He has said he will decide that issue by Wednesday.

Colwell has declined to be interviewed by the press.

Terry Rosenstock, the son of the victim, and Mindy Dinburg, the daughter, plan to attend the execution. Rosenstock said, "We have to," he said, "for closure."

Rosenstock, of New York, said Colwell "did wrong by my father," and the killing "leaves a permanent mark on my life."

Rosenstock said he and Dinburg, who lives in New Jersey, plan to arrive the night before the execution.

Colwell has asked that his television, which was in storage, be returned to him, Schlottman said. Colwell has also asked for ice in his soft drinks. The prison does not have an ice-making machine, Schlottman said.

Colwell, who turned 36 on March 1, would be the 10th person executed since Nevada re-established the death penalty in 1977. The last execution was of Sebastian Bridges on April 21, 2001.

In 1901 the Legislature ordered all executions to be carried out at the state prison in Carson City, according to state archivist Guy Rocha. Since then 51 men have been executed: 32 in the gas chamber; 10 by hanging; eight by lethal injection; and one shot.

The only woman ever executed, Elizabeth Potts, was hanged with her husband Josiah Potts in Elko using double gallows on June 20, 1890, for the shooting murder and mutilation of Miles Faucett in Carlin.

The oldest man executed at the state prison was John Kramer, 61, who was put to death in August 1942. The youngest was Floyd Loveless, 17, who was put to death in September 1944 for the murder of a constable near Carlin when Loveless was 15.

The March 26 execution is expected to have an estimated 20 witnesses, including the family members and 10 members of the media, Schlottman said.

On March 10, 1994, Colwell and his girlfriend Merillee Paul robbed and murdered 76-year-old Frank Rosenstock at the Tropicana. Rosenstock, of Florida, was handcuffed and strangled with a belt.

Colwell and Paul fled to Oregon, where she turned herself in to authorities. She pleaded guilty to first-degree murder and testified against Colwell. She is serving a life term with the possibility of parole.

The state initially did not seek the death penalty in the case, but Colwell offered to plead guilty to all charges if the state changed its position. At the penalty hearing before three judges, Colwell asked to be put to death.

Before the execution, Colwell, whose alias is Charles Durant, will be transferred to one of two "last-night cells," where three to four officers will be assigned. Prison rules say one guard must always have the condemned man in sight so he does not try to commit suicide.

Radio and television sets are placed outside the cell, so there are no cords in the cell. The condemned man is strip-searched before he enters the cell. He is allowed to order his last meal.

There is a telephone outside the cell so the inmate can make his final calls, or seek a stay of execution.

Clergy members are available, and several hours before the execution the inmate can request a sedative.

At the appointed time the inmate is led by guards to the death room, where he is placed on a gurney and secured by straps on his wrists, biceps, chest, stomach and legs. He is not masked or hooded and he can move his head to face the witnesses if he wishes.

Through three windows, witnesses can view the inmate being strapped down. The shades are drawn when an intravenous tube is placed in each arm. The shades are then lifted again, with the condemned man lying on the gurney.

Some of the condemned men have mouthed words to the witnesses, either asking for forgiveness or claiming their innocence. Others kept their eyes toward the ceiling. The inmate is asked by Corrections Director Jackie Crawford whether he has any last words.

The lethal drugs are then administered. An unidentified person, hidden from view in an adjoining room, pushes the syringe.

Prison physician Dr. Ted D'Amico said sodium thiopental is administered first to put the man to sleep; then 20 milligrams of Pavulon goes into the veins to stop the lungs; and finally, potassium chloride, which stops the heart.

The process takes several minutes. The blinds are then drawn and D'Amico enters the room to pronounce death.

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