Murderer of four died

Before lethal injection: “Let’s get it over with”

Joseph Corcoran had killed four people.(Bild: Krone KREATIV/AP/Erin Hooley, Indiana Department of Corrections)

Almost 30 years ago, Joseph Corcoran killed four people - now he had to pay for these deeds with his life in the US state of Indiana. According to the authorities, his last words were: "Let's get it over with."

In 1997, 49-year-old Corcoran killed his brother, his sister's fiancé and two of their friends. He was sentenced to death in 1999. A few years before the quadruple murder, he had been accused of murdering his parents - but because there was only circumstantial evidence, the then 17-year-old was not convicted. 

Joseph Corcoran at a court trial(Bild: APA/AP)

Long delay because medication was missing
Corcoran's execution was the first in the state of Indiana for 15 years. Previously, "after years of effort", the state had procured the drug pentobarbital to enable executions by lethal injection, as Governor Eric Holcomb explained. The long delay in carrying out the death sentence against Corcoran was only due to the lack of the drug. 

The death row inmate claims not to have been afraid before his execution. When asked about this, he explained: "Not really", and asked the officials to "get it over with". For his last meal, he asked for an ice cream from Ben & Jerry's.

Tahina Corcoran(Bild: APA/Associated Press)

Wife of the murderer: "He doesn't understand what's happening"
The condemned man's lawyers and his wife Tahina Corcoran fought to the last to stop the execution. They argue that the death row inmate suffers from schizophrenia and is unaware of the consequences of his actions. "He is in a state of shock and does not understand what is happening," explained his wife.

Corcoran's sister Kelly Ernst - who was also the sister of one of the victims and was engaged to another - also spoke out against her brother's execution and the death penalty in general. In her opinion, his mental illness was "pretty obvious".