'Embrace your execution': Missouri rapist uses last words to tell fellow inmates it’s an easier form of death than serving life without parole

Home Top

EXCLUSIVE: Was JFK a bigamist? On the eve of what would have been Jackie Kennedy's 86th birthday the mystery over whether the president was FIRST married to a Palm Beach socialite still lingers
Black Mississippi Confederate flag supporter dies after rally when 'car full of jeering African American men forced him off the road'
Father, 20, charged with abuse after 'viciously assaulting' his three-month-old son who is not expected to survive
Russia warns US-led military exercises may have 'explosive consequences' as 1,800 troops from 18 countries begin 'morale boosting' training drills in western Ukraine
FBI recovers Chattanooga gunman's 'anti-American diary' which reveals his anger at the war on terror, a growing dependence on drugs and his desire to commit suicide and become a 'martyr'
Always dieting but NEVER lose weight? Expert reveals the six mistakes we all make - from eating 'healthy' food to stress snacking
Pictured: The 21-year-old man found dead in Demi Moore's Beverly Hills pool after party - as actress calls drowning death 'an unthinkable tragedy'
'It's offensive and the real heroes are the 55,000 that died': John McCain breaks silence on Donald Trump's comments about his war service
Much ado about nothing? New poll shows Trump's 'war hero' gaffe about John McCain hasn't changed his standing in Iowa
'What if I'm an a**hole who couldn't give a s*** about America's hungry families?' HBO talk-show host John Oliver hits out at Donald Trump in food waste investigation
George Lopez leads crowd in 'f***' Donald Trump chant at stand-up show
Diner owner under fire for yelling at crying toddler defends her actions and says at least she made the child quiet
Gay fathers battle to leave Thailand with surrogate baby daughter after mother says they are not a 'normal couple' and refuses to let child get a passport
Twitter users who doubt noted civil rights activist Sandra Bland committed suicide in jail post hashtag 'If I Die in Police Custody' to draw attention to 'unfathomable' death
'It's raining bodies': Harrowing new video captures the moment traumatised couple watch MH17 victims fall from the sky as they drive past burning wreckage in Ukraine
13-year-old boy 'tackles' his older brother to save his life after he was electrocuted trying to climb on a roof during a game of hide and seek in Florida
The Cuban flag is raised in Washington for the first time in 54 years as the country restores diplomatic ties with the U.S.
He earns $2.7 million a year, has a model wife, a huge property portfolio and lost his brother in a car crash at 16: The amazing life of shark attack survivor Mick Fanning
Was the shark that attacked Mick Fanning caught on camera swimming metres from him hours before the terrifying incident? Footage shows huge shadow lurking behind the Aussie surfer earlier in the competition
'I was just swimming along... and some dude hits me': Internet goes wild for Mick Fanning's amazing escape from shark attack in hilarious memes
Photo of teenager at a party with ridiculous haircut is huge hit online with more than 1.7MILLION views in less than a week - and of course inspires some hilarious memes
Man, 31, lured 15-year-old girl into dog-collar sex parties with his wife after inviting teen's older sister to live with them
Lonely people are not just awkward: Loners 'crack under the pressure' of social interaction
Pictured: The respected family doctor who was 'killed by her ex-boyfriend who then brutally murdered her two young daughters and another mother and child visiting for a sleepover'

David Zink, 55, was executed Tuesday evening for the 2001 murder of 19-year-old Amanda Morton
In a final statement, Zink apologized to both Morton's family and his own
He also offered advice to other prisoners on death row, telling them to embrace their fate because 'we have a much easier death than most'
In 2001, Zink had just finished 20-year jail term, when he drunkenly crashed into Morton's car
Fearing it was a violation of his parole, Zink abducted Morton, took her to a motel, raped her and then took her to cemetery where he severed her spine
He laughed as he told police in detail how he killed her
Zink's last meal was cheeseburger, french fries, cheesecake and a soft drink, an official said

By Associated Press and Dailymail.com Reporter and Mia De Graaf For Dailymail.com

Published: 00:22 EST, 14 July 2015 | Updated: 08:16 EST, 15 July 2015

View
comments

A man convicted of raping a 19-year-old girl then tying her to a cemetery tree and killing her with his bare hands was executed on Tuesday evening.

David Zink, 55, a Missouri inmate was executed Tuesday after the U.S. Supreme Court and the governor declined to intervene.

Zink was put to death at a state prison near Bonne Terre, south of St. Louis, hours after the nation's high court rebuffed his last appeals and Governor Jay Nixon rejected his clemency request.

Before the injection, Zink was allowed a last meal of a cheeseburger, french fries, soda and cheesecake for dessert.

Corrections Department spokesman Mike O'Connell said the lethal injection began at 7:33pm and Zink was pronounced dead at 7:41pm.

David Zink, 55, a Missouri inmate was executed Tuesday after the U.S. Supreme Court and the governor declined to intervene. He was convicted in 2004 of abducting, raping and murdering 19-year-old Amanda Morton (right) in 2001

Zink began breathing haltingly shortly after the injection began, O'Connell said.

His right hand twitched several times before Zink eventually became motionless.

Zinks last meal was a cheeseburger, french fries, cheesecake and a soft drink, an official said.

In a final written statement, Zink said he hoped his execution would bring peace to the family of the woman he killed, Amanda Morton. 'I offer my sincerest apology to Amanda Morton's family and friends for my actions.'

He added a message to other inmates on death row.

'For those who remain on death row, understand that everyone is going to die. Statistically speaking, we have a much easier death than most. So I encourage you to embrace it and celebrate our true liberation before society figures it out and condemns us to life without parole and we too will die a lingering death.'

Authorities said Zink abducted Morton in 2001 after hitting her car from behind on an Interstate 44 exit ramp a mile from her Strafford home. Morton was driving home after visiting a friend.

DAVID ZINK'S FINAL STATEMENT

'I can't imagine the pain and anguish one experiences when they learn that someone has killed a loved one, and I offer my sincerest apology to Amanda Morton's family and friends for my actions. I hope my execution brings them the peace and satisfaction they seek.

'I also have to apologize to the second set of victims, my family and friends, that had the unfortunate circumstance of developing emotions which will now cause them pain and suffering upon my execution.

'I kept my promise to fight this case for their benefit, and although unsuccessful to prevent the execution, we have been successful in exposing some serious flaws that offend the basic concept of the American Justice System.

'For those who remain on death row, understand that everyone is going to die. Statistically speaking, we have a much easier death than most, so I encourage you to embrace it and celebrate our true liberation before society figures it out and condemns us to life without parole and we too will die a lingering death.'

Chilling confession of rapist and murderer David Zink

Just months before the slaying, Zink had been released from a Texas prison after serving 20 years on rape, abduction and escape charges.

Fearing that his drunken fender-bender with Morton could violate his parole and send him back to prison, Zink abducted Morton, taking her to a motel.

'If I think that you're going to pose a threat to my freedom, it is set in my mind I want to eliminate you,' Zink said in his videotaped confession.

Police found Morton's Chevrolet Cavalier abandoned on the ramp with the keys in the ignition, the engine running and the headlights and hazard lights on.

Her purse, credit card and medication were found inside the car.

The motel's manager later saw a televised news report about Morton's disappearance, recognized her as the woman who had checked in with Zink, and gave investigators Zink's name and license plate number from motel registration.

Zink, after being arrested at his parents' home, led authorities to Morton's buried body in a cemetery, confessing matter-of-factly and at times laughing on videotape that he had tied her to a tree there and told her to look up. When the bewildered Morton begrudgingly glanced skyward, Zink said, he snapped her neck, choked her with his hands and a rope, and stuffed her mouth with mud and leaves.

Callous: Zink laughed (pictured) during his confession as he told police how he tied Morton to a tree, told her to look up, then snapped her neck and sliced her spinal cord with a knife. He was sentenced in 2004

Worried that Morton might regain consciousness, Zink admitted, he used a knife to sever her spinal cord at the neck and covered her body with leaves before retrieving from his home a shovel he used to bury her.

An autopsy showed Morton had eight broken ribs and 50 to 100 blunt-force injuries. She also had been sexually assaulted, with DNA evidence linked to Zink found on her body.

Zink had appealed to stop his execution. A three-judge panel of the 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals on Tuesday declined, without comment, his claims that the death penalty was unconstitutional. On Monday, the St. Louis-based court had rejected his challenge of the drug process used during lethal injections.

His appellate attorneys did not accept requests by The Associated Press for interviews this week.

Messages left Monday with Morton's mother and sister were not returned. The execution was witnessed by Morton's parents and sister along with extended family. They declined to speak to the media after the execution.

Zink became the fifth man executed this year in Missouri and the 17th since November 2013. Only Texas has executed more inmates over that span.