# Executing someone with a full colon **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [December 12, 2012, 7:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/executing-someone-with-a-full-colon/643809 "2012-12-12T07:13:40Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![etv78](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/d78d45/32.png) [@etv78](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/etv78)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2012, 7:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/executing-someone-with-a-full-colon/643809/1 "2012-12-12T07:13:40Z")
In IMHO we’re talking about what your last meal would be. My meal is pretty substantial, in the unlikely event I’d finish it all, how would having that much food/stool in my system effect my execution? Does the method matter? BTW, I’m assuming the meal is consumed several hours ahead of the walk down the Green Mile. Is that the case IRL? ---
**Author:** ![chacoguy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/50afbb/32.png) [@chacoguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/chacoguy)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2012, 8:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/executing-someone-with-a-full-colon/643809/2 "2012-12-12T08:05:25Z")
You’re gonna die. They don’t care about your shit. ---
**Author:** ![Broomstick](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/broomstick/32/246_2.png) [@Broomstick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Broomstick)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2012, 9:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/executing-someone-with-a-full-colon/643809/3 "2012-12-12T09:13:00Z")
Generally, there’s not a sufficient lapse of time between your last meal and your execution to allow it to travel to your colon. To and possibly through your stomach, but it is unlikely that meal would be ready to exit at the big moment. Assuming a prior meal is lined up for evacuation the results can vary. Not everyone who dies poops their pants or pisses their panties immediately, it may take some time for sphincters to relax sufficiently to allow this. Then again, the anticipation of facing a firing squad, noose, sword, axe, chainsaw, or whatever else is to be employed may well make someone lose bowel control prior to the actual execution. So… the effects may well vary. ---
**Author:** ![AClockworkMelon](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aclockworkmelon/32/10803_2.png) [@AClockworkMelon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AClockworkMelon)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2012, 9:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/executing-someone-with-a-full-colon/643809/4 "2012-12-12T09:25:21Z")
Actually, I’ve read that you typically have your “last” meal a few days before you’re executed because most people lose their appetite in the hours leading up to it. ---
**Author:** ![voltaire](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/voltaire/32/313_2.png) [@voltaire](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/voltaire)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2012, 10:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/executing-someone-with-a-full-colon/643809/5 "2012-12-12T10:25:45Z")
That’s the best way… trying to execute someone with an empty colon would take forever! ---
**Author:** ![drewtwo99](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/d07c76/32.png) [@drewtwo99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/drewtwo99)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2012, 10:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/executing-someone-with-a-full-colon/643809/6 "2012-12-12T10:31:17Z")
> [@voltaire](#): > > That’s the best way… trying to execute someone with an empty colon would take forever! Ha! I giggled 😃 ---
**Author:** ![si\_blakely](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d9b06d/32.png) [@si\_blakely](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/si_blakely)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2012, 11:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/executing-someone-with-a-full-colon/643809/7 "2012-12-12T11:14:45Z")
> [@voltaire](#): > > That’s the best way… trying to execute someone with an empty colon would take forever! So would execution with a semi-colon be punctuated? Si ---
**Author:** ![Darth\_Panda](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ee7513/32.png) [@Darth\_Panda](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darth_Panda)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2012, 12:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/executing-someone-with-a-full-colon/643809/8 "2012-12-12T12:04:59Z")
> [@si\_blakely](#): > > So would execution with a semi-colon be punctuated? > > Si Well, as a parenthetical, I’d certainly expect a lot of exclamations. ---
**Author:** ![si\_blakely](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d9b06d/32.png) [@si\_blakely](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/si_blakely)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2012, 12:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/executing-someone-with-a-full-colon/643809/9 "2012-12-12T12:10:44Z")
> [@Darth\_Panda](#): > > Well, as a parenthetical, I’d certainly expect a lot of exclamations. I’m gonna put someone in a comma 😃 Si ---
**Author:** ![What\_the](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/f4b2a3/32.png) [@What\_the](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/What_the)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2012, 3:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/executing-someone-with-a-full-colon/643809/10 "2012-12-12T15:54:44Z")
> [@chacoguy](#): > > You’re gonna die. They don’t care about your shit. I’ve been on the verge of asking the question in the OP myself for a while now. If I were an executioner and had my way I’d definitely make them wear a diaper just in case. I’ve been wondering if there are any historical accounts on the subject whether it be the one side taking protective measures or the other side doing whatever they can to leave the biggest mess as possible. ---
**Author:** ![Bullitt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bullitt/32/5725_2.png) [@Bullitt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bullitt)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2012, 4:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/executing-someone-with-a-full-colon/643809/11 "2012-12-12T16:21:09Z")
This thread is full of shit. ---
**Author:** ![Malacandra](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Malacandra](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Malacandra)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2012, 7:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/executing-someone-with-a-full-colon/643809/12 "2012-12-12T19:12:50Z")
> [@si\_blakely](#): > > I’m gonna put someone in a comma 😃 > > Si Usually when you execute someone you’re looking to bring them to a full stop. ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2012, 7:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/executing-someone-with-a-full-colon/643809/13 "2012-12-12T19:16:07Z")
They executed Caeser with daggers. ---
**Author:** ![BubbaDog](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bubbadog/32/333_2.png) [@BubbaDog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BubbaDog)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2012, 7:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/executing-someone-with-a-full-colon/643809/14 "2012-12-12T19:41:50Z")
I worked with a guy who would attempt to execute his coworkers with cologne. ---
**Author:** ![Donnerwetter](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b2d939/32.png) [@Donnerwetter](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Donnerwetter)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2012, 7:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/executing-someone-with-a-full-colon/643809/15 "2012-12-12T19:52:30Z")
IIRC, Truman Capote describes how one of the murderers of the Clutter family insists on going to the bathroom several times before his execution because he wants to be absolutely sure to have an empty colon when he is hanged. ---
**Author:** ![Donnerwetter](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b2d939/32.png) [@Donnerwetter](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Donnerwetter)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2012, 7:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/executing-someone-with-a-full-colon/643809/16 "2012-12-12T19:57:41Z")
I completely borked my last post. Don’t know how to fix it. Here is the link to the Wikipedia arcticle: > **[In Cold Blood](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/In_Cold_Blood)** > > In Cold Blood is a non-fiction novel by American author Truman Capote, first published in 1966. It details the 1959 murders of four members of the Clutter family in the small farming community of Holcomb, Kansas. > Capote learned of the quadruple murder before the killers were captured, and he traveled to Kansas to write about the crime. He was accompanied by his childhood friend and fellow author Harper Lee, and they interviewed residents and investigators assigned to the case and took thousand... Sorry about that. ---
**Author:** ![ed\_anger](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/bbce88/32.png) [@ed\_anger](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ed_anger)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2012, 9:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/executing-someone-with-a-full-colon/643809/17 "2012-12-12T21:20:04Z")
enlightened prisons now offer a last meal and colonic before the execution. ---
**Author:** ![Duckster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/duckster/32/1244_2.png) [@Duckster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Duckster)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2012, 2:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/executing-someone-with-a-full-colon/643809/18 "2012-12-13T02:54:53Z")
> [@](#): > > In the United States, most states give the meal a day or two before execution and use the [euphemism](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Euphemism) “special meal”. Alcohol or tobacco are usually denied. Unorthodox or unavailable requests are replaced with substitutes. Some states place tight restrictions. In Florida, the food for the last meal must be purchased locally and the cost is limited to $40.[[3]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Last_meal#cite_note-fdoc-3) In Oklahoma, cost is limited to $15. In [Louisiana](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Louisiana), the [prison warden](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prison_warden) traditionally joins the condemned prisoner for the last meal; on one occasion, the warden paid for an inmate’s lobster dinner.[[4]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Last_meal#cite_note-4) [Last meal - Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Last_meal#Contemporary_restrictions) [The last meals of executed criminals](http://www.cbsnews.com/2300-504083_162-10008887.html) - CBS News _48 Hours_ - Photos and meal lists. > [@](#): > > The executed always lose sphincter control and executioners now use diapers and plugs. [http://usa-atlas.com/1480991.html](http://usa-atlas.com/1480991.html) ---
**Author:** ![Hail\_Ants](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/dc4da7/32.png) [@Hail\_Ants](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hail_Ants)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2012, 1:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/executing-someone-with-a-full-colon/643809/19 "2012-12-13T13:51:35Z")
> [@What\_the](#): > > If I were an executioner and had my way I’d definitely make them wear a diaper just in case. I saw an HBO docu years ago and a condemned inmate not only mentioned diapers but he said they also use a, ahem, rectal plug. The inmate thought that the prison doctor was an incompetent quack and was worried that he was going to screw it up. More than I wanted to know… ---
**Author:** ![Leo\_Bloom](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/leo_bloom/32/10377_2.png) [@Leo\_Bloom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leo_Bloom)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2012, 2:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/executing-someone-with-a-full-colon/643809/20 "2012-12-13T14:36:27Z")
> [@Donnerwetter](#): > > I completely borked my last post. Don’t know how to fix it. Here is the link to the Wikipedia arcticle: > > [In Cold Blood - Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/In_Cold_Blood) > > Sorry about that. I was going to mention this when I saw the thread title. In the movie, a pathetic and effective moment. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/executing-someone-with-a-full-colon/643809.md?page=2)