Sebastian Bridges was executed by the State of Nevada for the murder of Hunter Blatchford
According to court documents Sebastian Bridges met his wife while he was serving time in a California prison. His wife would flee to Nevada before he was released. Sebastian would invite her and her boyfriend Hunter Blatchford over so she could collect her property. When they showed up Hunter Blatchford would be shot and killed
Sebastian Bridges would be arrested, convicted and sentenced to death
Sebastian Bridges would be executed on April 21 by lethal injection
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When Was Sebastian Bridges Executed
Sebastian Bridges was executed on April 21 2001
Sebastian Bridges Case
A convicted killer who could have stopped his execution by asking for an appeal died by injection after screaming to prison officials that he should be allowed to live. Yelling I killed nobody, nobody,'' Sebastian Stephanus Bridges, 37, was executed late Saturday for shooting Hunter Blatchford and letting him bleed to death in the desert outside Las Vegas. Bridges could have stopped the execution at any time by saying he wanted to appeal, but did not. Instead, he pleaded with prison officials to let him live, shouting,You want to kill me like a dog.”
Walt Blatchford, the victim’s father, traveled from Tennessee to view the execution. He stared silently at Bridges through a glass viewing window. “There is a somewhat twisted man there,” he said after the execution. I didn't take any of that seriously. I didn't take it personally.'' Bridges had said his estranged wife Laurie shot Blatchford but that he took the blame out offatal, unconditional love and loyalty to her.”
Defense attorney Michael Pescetta was twice brought into the execution chamber to try to get Bridges to change his mind about appealing. He died protesting his innocence and the unfairness of the process _ yet he was unwilling to stop it,'' Pescetta said. The Rev. Chuck Durante, who led a protest vigil outside Nevada State Prison, said Bridges' death for the 1997 killing amounted to a state-assisted suicide.For Christians this day is in the octave of Easter,” the Catholic priest said. “From Easter Day until a week later we celebrate life and hope. And tonight the state celebrates death.”
Bridges appeared calm as he was strapped to a gurney 10 minutes before his scheduled 9 p.m. execution, but broke down minutes later. He screamed that prison officials should halt the execution, but finally said, I will not stop it.'' As the injections began, Bridges raised his head, looked wildly at Blatchford, and screamed,This is murder.” Prison Director Jackie Crawford said Bridges’ last words were, You have no justification to kill me. It's just wrong. It's just wrong.'' Bridges was pronounced dead at 9:18 p.m.He said I could stop it,” Crawford said. “But he was the only one who could stop it.” Bridges, who was executed wearing a brown double-breasted Pierre Cardin suit and shiny, new black shoes, was consoled by his minister and a prison chaplain.
Earlier in the week, Gov. Kenny Guinn said he wouldn’t block the execution, Nevada’s ninth since the U.S. Supreme Court reinstated capital punishment in 1977 and the first since 1999. There have been 707 executions countrywide since 1977. Bridges, who changed his name from Carl Coetzer, had sent word to the South African government to keep out of the case.
http://www.apbnews.com/newscenter/breakingnews/2001/04/23/story_bizzare_execution.html