Convicted killer Oscar Ray Bolin was executed late Thursday for the murder of a Pasco County woman.
Though the U.S. Supreme Court considered a last-minute appeal, the 53-year-old killer of three women was executed at Florida State Prison in Starke at 10:16 p.m. Minutes earlier, the Court rejected the final appeal of Bolin, clearing the way for his execution.
The justices rejected Bolin's appeal and request for a stay without comment. The decision came almost four hours after Bolin was initially scheduled to be put to death by lethal injection at the Florida State Prison in Starke.
He was convicted of killing three women, but the 53-year-old's death warrant is for the 1986 slaying of 26-year-old Teri Lynn Mathews. She was abducted from a post office north of Tampa. Bolin was also sentenced to death for one of the other killings.
Florida Department of Corrections officials said Bolin ate a last meal and visited with family members prior to his scheduled execution. The meal included a steak, baked potato, salad and lemon meringue pie. His visitors included his wife, Rosalie, and Dale Recinella who is Bolin's spiritual adviser. Bolin was described as calm and in good spirits.
Gov. Rick Scott signed Bolin's death warrant in October for the 1986 death of Matthews.
Bolin was also sentenced to death for the killing of 17-year-old Stephanie Collins. A jury also gave him the death penalty for killing 25-year-old Natalie Holley, but that verdict was thrown out because of legal errors. Another jury eventually found him guilty of second-degree murder in that case.
Bolin was found guilty 10 times by 10 juries for three different murders.
