Pizza Wish

This story has stuck with me. It is the one about Philip Workman who was executed on Wednesday the 9th. His last meal wish was to have vegetarian pizza delivered to a group of homeless kids.

Workman was convicted of shooting a police officer in a botched Wendy's restaurant holdup in 1982. Workman was 53 at the time of his execution, born in 1953.

He served in the military and was discharged in 1973 at age 20. The details of his crimes and trial are extensive and on the web.

Executed man's last request honored -- pizza for homeless

Its a poignant case for many reasons; the murder of another individual who was also a cop, this theme of fast food joints that frame his life, the details of how his lawyers worked to stay the execution, he had an 8 year old daughter at the time of his crime, the simplicity of his final wish and its good intention and the way that intention echoed in Workman's prison community, and the renewed controversy over how lethal injection may not be the easy death we have up to this point thought it to be.

There's also his name, Workman. It is a very everyman sort of name.