In 2002, Michael Dewayne Smith was on the run, wanted for murder, when he shot and killed 40-year-old Janet Moore and 22-year-old Sharath Pulluru in Oklahoma City, OK. On April 4, 2024, Smith was put to death, and his sad final three words underscore the stark brutality of his crimes.
According to The Oklahoman, Smith, known as the “Hoover Killer,” didn’t intend to kill Moore or Pulluru. Moore was the mother of Phillip Zachary, whom Smith targeted as a suspected police informant. When Moore panicked, Smith said he had no choice but to shoot and kill her. After Moore died, he went to a nearby store to shoot a clerk because that clerk spoke to the press about a recent robbery. Pulluru was filling in for the clerk that day, so Smith shot him instead.
Smith, who had known gang affiliations, was 19 years old at the time and under the influence of PCP, and there was a warrant for his arrest stemming from a 2001 murder case. He confessed to killing Moore and Pulluru and was sentenced to death. In a separate trial, Smith was convicted of the 2001 shooting death of Otis Payne at an Oklahoma City nightclub.
CBS News says Smith appealed his death sentence several times, citing substance use issues and intellectual disabilities, but none of his appeals were successful. Speaking with the clemency board, Smith said, “I didn’t commit these crimes. I didn’t kill these people. I was high on drugs. I don’t even remember getting arrested.”
Meanwhile, Oklahoma Attorney General Gentner Drummond said in a request to deny Smith clemency, “Michael Smith’s outrageous claims of innocence have been repeatedly rejected in court. He is a ruthless killer who has confessed to his crimes on multiple occasions. There is no doubt in my mind that his request for clemency should be denied.”
“Nah, I’m good,” Smith said
As was customary, the night before Michael Dewayne Smith was set to die, he was offered a final meal, but reportedly, he turned it down. And when asked for his final words, Smith, 41, signaled resignation when he replied, “Nah, I’m good.” The Oklahoman says Smith was pronounced dead at 10:20 a.m. on April 4. After Smith died, Attorney General Gentner Drummond stated in part, “Justice has been served.”
On the day Smith’s execution was carried out, protestors gathered outside the governor’s mansion, among them Reverend Don Heath from the Oklahoma Coalition to Abolish the Death Penalty, who said,
“[Smith] was ill-served by advisers who encouraged him to proclaim his innocence instead of accepting responsibility for his crimes. That cost him any chance for clemency. He needed mercy and forgiveness and got none.”
via The Oklahoman
Smith’s execution was the first in Oklahoma in 2023 and the twelfth in the state since 2021, when capital punishment was put on hiatus after several mistakes were made while administering lethal injections.
Published: Apr 4, 2024 05:04 pm