Demetrius Terrance Frazier, the 52-year old Alabama inmate convicted for the 1991 rape and murder of Pauline Brown, requested a last meal consisting of burritos, a chicken chalupa, chips and dip, and a Mountain Dew. The Alabama Department of Corrections confirmed that Frazier selected the fast food items before his execution by nitrogen gas on Thursday evening.
Frazier was pronounced dead at 6:36 p.m. at the William C. Holman Correctional Facility in Atmore, Alabama, marking the fourth execution in the United States using nitrogen hypoxia, USA Today reports. This method, which involves replacing breathable air with pure nitrogen gas, has been a subject of controversy, with opponents calling it experimental and inhumane while proponents, including Alabama officials, argue it is effective and constitutional.
Frazier's final words included an apology to Brown's family, stating, "What happened to her should have never happened." He also expressed love for fellow inmates on Death Row and referenced his hometown with the phrase, "Detroit strong."
Convicted of murdering Brown after breaking into her Birmingham apartment while she slept, Frazier confessed to raping her at gunpoint, stealing money, and shooting her in the head when she pleaded for her life. Months later, during an interrogation for an unrelated crime in Michigan, he admitted to the killing. At the time, he was serving a life sentence for the 1992 murder of 14-year-old Crystal Kendrick in Detroit before being transferred to Alabama in 2011.
Alabama Governor Kay Ivey affirmed the execution, stating that justice was served and emphasizing that violent criminals "are not welcome on our streets." Brown's family members attended the execution but declined to speak publicly.
Hours before his death, Frazier spent time with his mother, sister, and legal team. His legal efforts to challenge the nitrogen gas execution were unsuccessful, with courts rejecting arguments that the method violated constitutional protections against cruel and unusual punishment.
Frazier's execution was the first in Alabama this year and the third in the United States in 2025, following recent lethal injections in Texas and South Carolina. Officials maintain that nitrogen hypoxia will continue to be used for executions in Alabama despite ongoing legal and ethical debates.
Originally published on Latin Times
