A man who killed two people in a drug dispute and a sheriff’s deputy in a subsequent shootout was put to death in what could be Missouri’s last execution for some time.
Earl Forrest died by injection for the December 2002 deaths of Harriett Smith, Michael Wells and Dent County Sheriff’s Deputy JoAnn Barnes. The 66-year-old Forrest declined to make a final statement.
He said something to his daughter
As his execution began, he mouthed words to his adult daughter who was among the witnesses. He stopped speaking within seconds of being injected with a lethal dose of pentobarbital, but showed no outward signs of distress. He was pronounced dead minutes later.
“We know this execution will not bring JoAnn back, but it destroyed an evil person that otherwise would be still walking this earth,” the deputy’s family members said in a statement in which they also described Barnes as a pillar of her rural community and a major influence in establishing a fire department there and later serving as its chief.
Execution delay
The execution was delayed about an hour, partly because of severe weather in the area. Tornado sirens sounded at one point.
Forrest’s fate was sealed hours before his punishment when the U.S. Supreme Court refused to halt the execution and Democratic Missouri Gov. Jay Nixon turned down a clemency request.
He was then drinking
Court documents showed Forrest had been drinking when he went to Smith’s home in the southern Missouri town of Salem and demanded that she fulfil her promise to buy a lawn mower and mobile home for him in exchange for introducing her to a source for methamphetamine.
Wells was visiting Smith at the time. An argument ensued, and Forrest shot Wells in the face. He shot Smith six times and took a lockbox full of meth valued at $25,000.
He then shot 2 more
When police converged on Forrest’s home, he shot Barnes and Dent County Sheriff Bob Wofford, according to court documents. Forrest was shot in the face in the exchange of gunfire. He then put some meth in his mouth, crawled to the door and yelled, “I surrender. We need help. People down.” Forrest’s girlfriend, Angela Gamblin, also was shot in the burst of gunfire. She and Wofford survived, along with Forrest.
Missouri has been one of the most prolific states for executions in recent years, second only to Texas. With the execution of Forrest, the state has put 19 men to death since November 2013, including six inmates last year. Forrest was the first in 2016.
