Gary Lee Roll
Encyclopedia
Gary Lee Roll was executed by lethal injection
in the state of Missouri
. He was convicted of the murders of 3 members of the Sheper family in Cape Girardeau, Missouri
during a robbery in 1992. Roll shot the mother and one son with his pistol and stabbed the other with a hunting knife. The robbers made off with approximately 12 ounces of marijuana and $214 cash. A taped conversation where Roll admitted to the murders was turned into police by an accomplice. He was arrested in November 1992, pleaded guilty of all counts, and was sentenced to death in November 1993. His attorneys filed few appeals of his sentence and he did not actively seek to avoid it. He reportedly had chronic jaw pain from an injury incurred while serving in the United States military and was healing from breaking his leg after a fall from his roof and consumed recreational drugs to lessen the pain. Roll was reportedly under the influence of alcohol, marijuana, and 4 to 6 "hits" of LSD
at the time of his crimes. It has been theorized that when faced with a decision between life in prison with pain and no drugs and death, Roll preferred his death sentence. He was executed on his originally scheduled date of August 30, 2000.
Lethal injection
Lethal injection is the practice of injecting a person with a fatal dose of drugs for the express purpose of causing the immediate death of the subject. The main application for this procedure is capital punishment, but the term may also be applied in a broad sense to euthanasia and suicide...
in the state of Missouri
Missouri
Missouri is a US state located in the Midwestern United States, bordered by Iowa, Illinois, Kentucky, Tennessee, Arkansas, Oklahoma, Kansas and Nebraska. With a 2010 population of 5,988,927, Missouri is the 18th most populous state in the nation and the fifth most populous in the Midwest. It...
. He was convicted of the murders of 3 members of the Sheper family in Cape Girardeau, Missouri
Cape Girardeau, Missouri
Cape Girardeau is a city located in Cape Girardeau and Scott counties in Southeast Missouri in the United States. It is located approximately southeast of St. Louis and north of Memphis. As of the 2010 census, the city's population was 37,941. A college town, it is the home of Southeast Missouri...
during a robbery in 1992. Roll shot the mother and one son with his pistol and stabbed the other with a hunting knife. The robbers made off with approximately 12 ounces of marijuana and $214 cash. A taped conversation where Roll admitted to the murders was turned into police by an accomplice. He was arrested in November 1992, pleaded guilty of all counts, and was sentenced to death in November 1993. His attorneys filed few appeals of his sentence and he did not actively seek to avoid it. He reportedly had chronic jaw pain from an injury incurred while serving in the United States military and was healing from breaking his leg after a fall from his roof and consumed recreational drugs to lessen the pain. Roll was reportedly under the influence of alcohol, marijuana, and 4 to 6 "hits" of LSD
LSD
Lysergic acid diethylamide, abbreviated LSD or LSD-25, also known as lysergide and colloquially as acid, is a semisynthetic psychedelic drug of the ergoline family, well known for its psychological effects which can include altered thinking processes, closed and open eye visuals, synaesthesia, an...
at the time of his crimes. It has been theorized that when faced with a decision between life in prison with pain and no drugs and death, Roll preferred his death sentence. He was executed on his originally scheduled date of August 30, 2000.