The state of South Carolina executed Freddie Eugene Owens by lethal injection Friday evening, ending a 13-year pause in capital punishment in the state. He was pronounced dead at 6:55 p. m.
at the Broad River Correctional Institution in Columbia, bringing a close to a case that spanned nearly three decades and involved two brutal murders.
Owens, 46, was convicted in the 1997 murder of 41-year-old Irene Graves, a single mother of three who was shot in the head during a gas station robbery. The total take from the robbery was $37. 29.
He was also convicted of murdering a fellow inmate, Christopher Brian Lee, while awaiting sentencing for the Graves killing.
The execution proceeded despite a dramatic last-minute legal motion filed by his attorneys. The motion was based on a sworn statement from Steven Golden, the accomplice whose testimony was central to Owens’ conviction, who recanted his story. Golden now claims he lied under oath and that Owens was not the shooter.
The South Carolina Supreme Court rejected the emergency motion, ruling that Golden’s contradictory statements were not credible. The justices noted that Owens had confessed to the murder multiple times over the years, including to police, his mother, his girlfriend, and in open court.
Owens’ final word was a quiet “Bye” directed at his attorney. He did not make a grand final statement to the witnesses or the families of his victims. He spent his final hours in prayer with a Muslim spiritual adviser, having converted to Islam in 2015 and adopted the name Khalil Divine Black Sun Allah.
The conversion led to a significant conflict in his final days. South Carolina law allows the condemned to choose lethal injection, the electric chair, or the firing squad. Owens refused to choose, citing his Islamic faith, which prohibits suicide.
He argued that selecting his own method of execution would be a form of suicide.
His attorneys ultimately selected lethal injection on his behalf, describing it as the most humane option. The state served him his requested final meal, which included two cheeseburgers, French fries, a well-done ribeye steak, six chicken wings, two strawberry sodas, and a slice of apple pie.
The case dates back to November 1, 1997, when Owens and Golden entered a convenience store in Greenville with their faces covered. When Graves could not open the safe, Owens shot her in the head. The crime was captured on security footage, showing two masked men, one in a ski mask and one in a stocking mask.
Golden, who testified that Owens was the shooter, took a plea deal in exchange for his testimony. He was convicted of voluntary manslaughter and sentenced to 28 years in prison. His new claim that he lied out of fear of the unknown real killer was dismissed by the courts.
The violence did not end with the robbery. On February 16, 1999, just hours after being convicted of Graves’ murder, Owens killed his cellmate. Lee was a 28-year-old serving a 90-day sentence for a traffic violation.
He was in the wrong place at the wrong time.
Owens attacked Lee with a level of brutality that stunned even seasoned investigators. He beat him, stabbed him in the eye and throat with a ballpoint pen, and strangled him with a bedsheet. He then burned Lee’s eyes and hair with a lighter and forced a pen into his nostril to suffocate him.
The murder of Lee was a turning point in the case. When Owens stood before the judge the next day for sentencing, he confessed to the cellmate killing in open court. He showed no remorse, claiming he was falsely convicted of the Graves murder and had nothing left to lose.
The judge sentenced him to death that same day. Owens’ background was marked by severe trauma, including 𝓪𝓫𝓾𝓼𝓮 and neglect. He was placed in foster care at age five and witnessed his grandmother shoot a man when he was seven.
He was diagnosed with antisocial personality disorder.
The families of both victims were present in the witness room to watch the execution. They watched intently as the sentence was carried out. For them, the execution was the final chapter in a long and painful ordeal that had lasted more than 27 years.
The execution marks the first in South Carolina since 2011. The state had been unable to obtain lethal injection drugs for years, leading to a de facto moratorium. The state recently passed a shield law to protect the identity of 𝒹𝓇𝓊𝑔 suppliers, allowing the process to resume.
Owens’ legal team argued that the execution represented a grave miscarriage of justice. They pointed to Golden’s recantation as evidence that the conviction was unreliable. They also highlighted Owens’ religious conversion as proof that he was no longer the same man who committed the crimes.
The state argued that justice demanded the sentence be carried out. The prosecution noted that Owens had confessed to the murder multiple times, often in graphic detail. They argued that Golden’s recantation was a desperate attempt to stop an execution, not a genuine admission of perjury.
The execution chamber was a sterile, clinical environment. Owens was strapped to a gurney as the pentobarbital was administered. Witnesses reported that he closed his eyes and took several deep breaths.
Slight facial twitches were observed for a few minutes before his breathing stopped.
A medical professional entered the chamber at 6:54 p. m. to check for vital signs.
Owens was pronounced dead at 6:55 p. m. The atmosphere in the room was described as tense and silent.
The only sounds were the quiet sobs of the victims’ families.
The case had drawn national attention, reigniting the debate over the death penalty. Supporters of capital punishment argued that Owens’ crimes were so heinous that he forfeited his right to live. Opponents argued that the state should not be in the business of taking lives, especially in a flawed system.
The controversy over the accomplice’s testimony is likely to continue. Golden’s recantation raises questions about the reliability of eyewitness testimony in capital cases. Legal experts noted that recantations are often viewed with skepticism by courts, as they are frequently made under duress or for personal gain.
Owens’ final hours were spent in solitude and prayer. He did not request any family visits. He was accompanied by a Muslim spiritual adviser who stayed with him until the end.
He consumed his final meal alone, without comment.
The execution of Freddie Eugene Owens will stand as a landmark case in South Carolina’s history. It is a story of a troubled life, a brutal crime, a prison murder, a controversial accomplice, a religious awakening, and a state’s decision to end it all.
The long journey through the court system, the appeals, and the delays is finally over. The state of South Carolina has carried out its sentence. The echoes of this case, however, will continue to reverberate through the halls of the legal system and the consciences of those who followed it.
The families of Irene Graves and Christopher Lee can now begin the process of healing. They have waited 27 years for this moment. They watched as the man who killed their loved ones took his final breath, knowing that the justice system had run its course.
The state of South Carolina has resumed its use of the death penalty. The execution of Freddie Eugene Owens is the first of several scheduled executions in the coming months. The legal and ethical debates surrounding capital punishment are far from over.
Owens’ case serves as a grim reminder of the consequences of violence. It is a story of lives shattered, justice pursued, and the haunting weight of final judgment. The man who was once known as Freddy Eugene Owens is gone, but the questions his case raised remain.
