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Top 10 Final Moments of Real Life Killers

Top 10 Final Moments of Real Life Killers
VOICE OVER: Rebecca Brayton WRITTEN BY: Nathan Sharp
Whether it ended in blood, silence, or incoherent babble, the last moment's of these notorious individuals will shock you. For this list, we'll be looking at the most interesting final minutes of famous killers, whether confirmed or passed down through legend. Our countdown includes Lee Harvey Oswald, Jeffrey Dahmer, John Wayne Gacy, and more!

Top 10 Last Moments of Famous Killers


Welcome to WatchMojo, and today we’re counting down our picks for the Top 10 last moments of famous killers.

For this list, we’ll be looking at the most interesting final minutes of famous killers, whether confirmed or passed down through legend.

Which of these do you find the most fascinating? Let us know in the comments below!

#10: Lee Harvey Oswald

This Louisiana man made terrible history on November 22, 1963 when he shot and killed President Kennedy as the presidential motorcade was travelling through Dallas. Then, two days after the assassination, Oswald was scheduled to be escorted from police headquarters to the county jail. This event was broadcast on live television. Unfortunately, millions of viewers witnessed a second killing in real time, as nightclub owner Jack Ruby shot Oswald in the stomach. He was rushed to a nearby hospital but died less than two hours later. In just two days, the country witnessed two history-making events that would be discussed, debated, and studied for decades to come.

#9: George Appel

Back in January of 1928, a Brooklyn mobster named George Appel was sentenced to die for killing a New York police lieutenant. His sentence was the electric chair at New York’s infamous Sing Sing Correctional Facility. As it turns out, Appel was quite the master at gallows humor. As he was being strapped into the chair, Appel stated, “Well gentlemen, you are about to see a baked Appel!” Murderer though he was, in his last moments, Appel found time for a shockingly clever pun, and it made for some of the most memorable final words ever uttered.

#8: Gary Evans

Between 1985 and 1997, Gary Evans murdered a total of five people. He confessed to the killings in 1998 while in police custody. One month after the confessions were officially verified, Evans was being transported over New York’s Menands Bridge when he freed himself with a handcuff key he had hidden up his nose. He then broke out a window of the prison van and escaped onto the bridge. Evans, who refused to die from lethal injection, then took his own life by jumping off the bridge. While it’s frustrating that a criminal didn’t face legal punishment, this exciting escape sounds like something out of a movie.

#7: Thomas J. Grasso

This man killed two elderly people for a pittance. The first case occurred on Christmas Eve of 1990, when he stole $130 in loose change and a TV. The second occurred in the following July, when he stole a Social Security check. For his crimes, Grasso was sentenced to die at Oklahoma State Prison, and requested Spaghetti-Os for his last meal. But that is not what he received, and he was not happy. Grasso issued a statement shortly before his death, claiming, “I did not get my Spaghetti-Os, I got spaghetti. I want the press to know this.” It’s a disturbing response from a clearly unrepentant killer, regardless of whether it was meant to be funny or serious.

#6: Jeffrey Dahmer

This serial killer is the worst of the worst, and his name has become synonymous with horrible crimes. For his actions, Dahmer was sentenced to sixteen life sentences at Wisconsin’s Columbia Correctional Institution. By the mid ‘90s, Dahmer had given up on life and reportedly told his mother that he didn’t care if something happened to him. And something did indeed happen to him. On November 28, 1994, Dahmer was jumped and killed by another inmate named Christopher Scarver. According to Scarver, Dahmer didn’t make a single noise as he was being attacked, which could possibly speak to his acceptance of death. Scarver later gave multiple motives for the attack, including his disgust at Dahmer’s notorious crimes.

#5: Carl Panzram

The true number of Charles “Carl” Panzram’s murder victims remains unknown. He personally claimed to have killed 21 people, and was suspected of orchestrating over 100 deaths. He was sentenced to life at Leavenworth, but it was changed to a death sentence after he killed the laundry room foreman. Panzram was shockingly unrepentant to his last moment, writing in his statement, “I am not in the least bit sorry.” While being hung, Panzram spat in the executioner’s face and yelled, “Hurry it up you Hoosier bastard! I could kill a dozen men while you’re screwing around.” These were his famous last words, and they solidified the remorseless Panzram in the annals of serial killer history.

#4: Lavinia Fisher

It’s extremely hard to verify the story of Lavinia Fisher, and some historians believe that she never actually killed anyone. But Lavinia and her husband John were highway robbers who purportedly killed guests inside their Charleston inn. They were eventually convicted of highway robbery and sent to prison. Lavinia was sentenced to hang and supposedly issued some of the most admittedly badass final words ever uttered. Right before her death, Lavinia yelled, “If any of you have a message for the Devil, tell me now, for I shall be seeing him shortly.” Following this, she took her own life by jumping off the scaffold before the executioner could hang her.

#3: James French

The story of James French is depressingly fascinating. In 1958, French killed a motorist while hitchhiking and blatantly asked the jury to sentence him to death. When they gave him life instead, French wrote to the governor and requested a new trial. This didn’t work, so French killed his bunkmate. That did work, and he was finally sentenced to death. Shortly before his execution, French told a reporter, “If I were covering my execution, do you know what I’d say in the newspaper headline? ‘French fries.’” It’s yet another morbid bit of gallows humor, and it makes us question if he wanted the electric chair simply to make the joke.

#2: John Wayne Gacy

The Killer Clown himself, John Wayne Gacy is one of the most infamous serial killers in American history, owing both to the extent of his crimes and his life as a children’s entertainer. His execution is also the stuff of legend, cementing him as an unapologetic devil. Gacy made a final statement through his lawyer, claiming that his execution was meaningless and that killing him would not compensate his victims. When asked to give his final words in the lethal injection chamber, Gacy simply responded with a curt “Kiss my ass.” There were no tears shed for this clown.

#1: Aileen Wuornos

Between 1989 and 1990, Aileen Wuornos killed seven men who were soliciting sex from her, and she was subsequently sentenced to death. The day before her execution, Wuornos gave a very famous and rambling interview to filmmaker Nick Broomfield, which some believe displayed severe mental illness. Her final words are also indicative of her mental state. Just before Wuornos was lethally injected, she claimed, “Yes, I would just like to say I'm sailing with the rock, and I'll be back, like ‘Independence Day,’ with Jesus. June 6, like the movie. Big mother ship and all, I'll be back, I'll be back.” It’s totally nonsensical, and it all makes for some truly bizarre final moments.
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