SALT LAKE CITY (ABC4) – When the curtains to the witness chamber opened, Taberon Dave Honie was lying in an orange jumpsuit on the execution table, with his glasses on, and a white sheet pulled up to his chest.
My first thought was that he seemed calmer than I originally expected.
He briefly looked around the room, taking a glance at the window to his left, where the Department of Corrections told us his family was sitting behind a one-way glass.
His hands and legs were strapped to the table. I could see IVs hooked into both of his arms. At 12:03 a.m. on Aug. 8th, 2024, Warden Bart Mortensen handed Honie a microphone to share his final words:
“If it needs to be done for them to heal, let’s do this. If they tell you you can’t change, don’t listen to them. To all my brothers and sisters in here, continue to change. I love you all. Take care.”
The execution team pushed the first dose of pentobarbital at 12:04 a.m. I almost couldn’t tell when it started. Honie’s right foot started to bounce. It wasn’t clear if it was from him being nervous or if he was doing it in more of a rhythmic way. Chief Randal Honey later told us he believed it was nerves.
I noticed Honie’s steady breathing as the sheeting over his stomach moved up and down. Eventually, Honie stopped bouncing his foot.
He seemed to slowly blink, open his mouth, and speak to the guards. Chief Honey later shared with us that Honie told them, “Thank you for taking care of my family.” He then turned back to the one-way window to his left and said, “I love you.”
I saw Honie face back toward the ceiling. He inhaled deeply and blew out a puff of air followed by a big yawn.
What happened next was seemingly simple, but after the fact, I recognized they were telling signs of what was coming.
His mouth rested slightly open. I noticed his breathing quicken and his eyes close. The hand closest to where I was sitting was his right hand — it had been curled the whole time.
Slowly, his chest stopped moving and he lay still.
Around 12:13 a.m., the execution team administered a second dose of pentobarbital. I didn’t notice them do it.
After his body stilled, time seemed to slow down. Myself, along with six other media witnesses, stood in the observation room behind a one-way window. We watched as Warden Mortensen and Chief Honey stood over the table where Honie was lying.
Over the next several moments, Honey checked an EKG machine placed just above Honie’s right shoulder. We had no phones, no watches, no sense of time. It seemed to go on for quite a while but we later learned it took 17 minutes.
Eventually, Chief Honey shut the curtain over our window. He told us Honie’s family members were heading into the execution room to perform a spiritual ceremony over Honie’s body. I couldn’t hear anything from the witness room.
Following the ceremony, the Medical Examiner had access to the execution chamber.
Taberon Honie, the man convicted of murder and sentenced to death in 1999, was pronounced dead at 12:25 a.m. on Thursday, Aug. 8, 2024.
Later, they cleaned the room. The curtains were still closed, but we could smell it. It smelled almost chlorine-like. Once they cleared the room, they opened the door for us and we were allowed to go in.
There were six overhead lights and 12 spotlights on the ceiling. The room was bright and white when you entered. Looking closer at the execution table, I noticed there were four body straps and two wrist straps. I could still smell the intense scent of chlorine.
The other six reporters and I stood in the room and took in what just happened. To me, the room looked different now than it did just minutes ago.
We left the room shortly before 2 a.m. It had been almost an hour and a half since Taberon Honie’s death. We never crossed paths with the other witnesses. Honie had five there: four family members and one attorney. Seven victim witnesses also attended the execution, along with 10 government witnesses. It was a moment the Department of Corrections said they prepared for for months.
When the curtains closed for the final time, it was all over. Utah’s first execution in 14 years.
Post a Comment