# Why give a last meal? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [March 20, 2003, 8:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-give-a-last-meal/162883 "2003-03-20T20:10:50Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![daniel801](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b2d939/32.png) [@daniel801](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/daniel801)\ **Post date:** [March 20, 2003, 8:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-give-a-last-meal/162883/1 "2003-03-20T20:10:50Z")
What’s the story with giving to-be-executed prisoners their choices for a last meal? ---
**Author:** ![psychonaut](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/psychonaut/32/4655_2.png) [@psychonaut](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/psychonaut)\ **Post date:** [March 20, 2003, 8:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-give-a-last-meal/162883/2 "2003-03-20T20:17:40Z")
I would imagine that prisoners are given a last meal because it’s considered cruel and unusual punishment to starve them, even if you are going to hang/electrocute/decapitate them a few hours later. As for why they’re allowed to pick what they eat, it seems to be done on compassionate grounds. No idea if this practice is legally mandated anywhere, though – lawyers? ---
**Author:** ![dolphinboy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dolphinboy/32/330_2.png) [@dolphinboy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dolphinboy)\ **Post date:** [March 20, 2003, 8:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-give-a-last-meal/162883/3 "2003-03-20T20:19:58Z")
IANA Executioner but I believe there is a “custom”, at least in the West to grant someone on death a special last meal. I believe the prisoner can ask for almost anything they want… and the prison would then have to provide it. Within reason of course… ---
**Author:** ![Nametag](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/nametag/32/406_2.png) [@Nametag](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nametag)\ **Post date:** [March 20, 2003, 8:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-give-a-last-meal/162883/4 "2003-03-20T20:35:44Z")
Asked and answered elsewhere, but I’m not going to hunt down the thread. Psychonaut is right – except prisoners are allowed to select from a menu of fairly ordinary foods; they’re not allowed to pick anything they can imagine wanting to eat. (at least that’s how it is in the U.S. jurisdictions from which I’ve heard). ---
**Author:** ![Shagnasty](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9dc877/32.png) [@Shagnasty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shagnasty)\ **Post date:** [March 20, 2003, 8:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-give-a-last-meal/162883/5 "2003-03-20T20:45:25Z")
This oddly fascinating site gives the details of the last moeal ordered by prisoners on Death Row in Texas. [http://www.tdcj.state.tx.us/stat/finalmeals.htm](http://www.tdcj.state.tx.us/stat/finalmeals.htm) ---
**Author:** ![Skammer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skammer/32/143_2.png) [@Skammer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skammer)\ **Post date:** [March 20, 2003, 9:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-give-a-last-meal/162883/6 "2003-03-20T21:24:26Z")
That’s a cool link, **Shadnasty**. Some of those guys can really pack it away. I don’t know if I’d want to greet my final reward on such a full stomach. > [@](#): > > One whole fried chicken (extra crispy), salad with Thousand Island dressing, French toast, two diet Cokes, one apple pie, and French fries _Diet_ Coke? Really, what’s the point? Take the calories! Live a little! ---
**Author:** ![Skammer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skammer/32/143_2.png) [@Skammer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skammer)\ **Post date:** [March 20, 2003, 9:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-give-a-last-meal/162883/7 "2003-03-20T21:26:19Z")
Oops, sorry, **Shagnasty**! ---
**Author:** ![pravnik](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/8edcca/32.png) [@pravnik](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pravnik)\ **Post date:** [March 20, 2003, 9:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-give-a-last-meal/162883/8 "2003-03-20T21:43:52Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by psychonaut \* > \*\*No idea if this practice is legally mandated anywhere, though – lawyers? \*\* No, it’s not legally mandated, it’s a matter of prison policy based on the long standing tradition that as a humane society we will grant last requests of the condemmed. The prisoners in Texas are also allowed to choose what clothes they will wear to the guerney. Texas doesn’t allow the condemmed anything imaginable he wants to eat, it has to be something available from the prison kitchen (although the warden and chaplain will often go out of their way to accomodate special requests). If you check the website you’ll see a lot of hamburgers and fried chicken; that’s largely because these tend to be among the better of prison fare. Despite the requests, even the unusually large ones, most last meals reportedly go mostly uneaten. > [@](#): > > _Originally posted by Skammer_ > **_Diet_ Coke? Really, what’s the point? Take the calories! Live a little!** Yeah, but once you get used to diet, regular doesn’t taste right anymore. ---
**Author:** ![Knighted\_Vorpal\_Sword](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/ac91a4/32.png) [@Knighted\_Vorpal\_Sword](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Knighted_Vorpal_Sword)\ **Post date:** [March 20, 2003, 9:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-give-a-last-meal/162883/9 "2003-03-20T21:49:43Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Skammer \* > \*\*_Diet_ Coke? Really, what’s the point? Take the calories! Live a little! \*\* You may also notice that requests for cigarettes for the final meal were refused because of “prison policy.” ---
**Author:** ![WillSantini](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/ed8c4c/32.png) [@WillSantini](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WillSantini)\ **Post date:** [March 20, 2003, 10:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-give-a-last-meal/162883/10 "2003-03-20T22:03:34Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by pravnik \* > **Texas doesn’t allow the condemmed anything imaginable he wants to eat, it has to be something available from the prison kitchen (although the warden and chaplain will often go out of their way to accomodate special requests).** So having a home cooked meal delivered by Mom is out of the question? ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [March 20, 2003, 11:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-give-a-last-meal/162883/11 "2003-03-20T23:26:15Z")
> [@](#): > > Despite the requests, even the unusually large ones, most last meals reportedly go mostly uneaten. Although I’ll bet that the guy who asked for one tortilla and a glass of water finished it. And a lot of people prefer the taste of Diet Coke, because the consumers won’t let Coca-Cola improve the taste of the regular version. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [March 20, 2003, 11:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-give-a-last-meal/162883/12 "2003-03-20T23:35:47Z")
> [@](#): > > And a lot of people prefer the taste of Diet Coke, because the consumers won’t let Coca-Cola improve the taste of the regular version. They tried to improve the taste once, and they ended up with something that tasted like _ick_ Pepsi. ---
**Author:** ![Mephisto](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/48db29/32.png) [@Mephisto](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mephisto)\ **Post date:** [March 21, 2003, 12:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-give-a-last-meal/162883/13 "2003-03-21T00:00:43Z")
Around the time of Timothy McVeigh’s execution, I learned from that most dependable of sources, television, that the big prison by Terre Haute lets the condemned have a meal from any of the local restaurants so long as the price is under a certain amount. I think the amount was around twenty bucks. I know it wasn’t much more than that. So if you’re going to be executed at the U.S. Penitentiary near Terre Haute, you can probably get a chicken-fried steak or a hot beef sandwhich, but you may be out of luck if you want filet mignon or lobster before you ride the lightening. ---
**Author:** ![Philster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/13edae/32.png) [@Philster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Philster)\ **Post date:** [March 21, 2003, 3:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-give-a-last-meal/162883/14 "2003-03-21T03:08:16Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by daniel801 \* > \*\*What’s the story with giving to-be-executed prisoners their choices for a last meal? \*\* After the bleeding heart liberals come to the final conclusion that the prisoner really won’t be getting another appeal, or some miracle call from the governor demanding an experimental rehad program for those about to be executed, in one final moment of conscience clearing they make sure they do something positive for the victim (oops…I mean ‘prisoner’). 😃 ---
**Author:** ![expect\_the\_unexpecteb](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/8edcca/32.png) [@expect\_the\_unexpecteb](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/expect_the_unexpecteb)\ **Post date:** [March 21, 2003, 3:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-give-a-last-meal/162883/15 "2003-03-21T03:22:14Z")
With it costing millions over decades to get a guy through death these days, the last meal is not the time to worry about costs. ---
**Author:** ![BrandonR](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/779978/32.png) [@BrandonR](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrandonR)\ **Post date:** [March 21, 2003, 3:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-give-a-last-meal/162883/16 "2003-03-21T03:32:27Z")
What about the guy who asked for: > [@](#): > > Two 16 oz. ribeyes, one lb. turkey breast (sliced thin), twelve strips of bacon, two large hamburgers with mayo, onion, and lettuce, two large baked potatoes with butter, sour cream, cheese, and chives, four slices of cheese or one-half pound of grated cheddar cheese, chef salad with blue cheese dressing, two ears of corn on the cob, one pint of mint chocolate chip ice cream, and four vanilla Cokes or Mr. Pibb As a last meal? Sheesh… ---
**Author:** ![Mandarax](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/df705f/32.png) [@Mandarax](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mandarax)\ **Post date:** [March 21, 2003, 3:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-give-a-last-meal/162883/17 "2003-03-21T03:35:55Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Skammer \* > **_Diet_ Coke? Really, what’s the point?** [Saturday Night Live](http://www.saturday-night-live.com/snl/weekendupdate/98/2-7.html) asked a similar question regarding Karla Faye Tucker: > [@](#): > > Karla Faye Tucker’s last meal was a banana, a peach, and a salad. What kind of last meal is that? That’s a first date meal, the kind of thing you order so the guy you’re with doesn’t think you’re gonna get fat. We’ve brainwashed women so badly that she won’t even order something she wants on her day of execution. She doesn’t want the other death row women to talk about her. ‘Her ass looked huge in that chair.’ ---
**Author:** ![Earl\_of\_Sandwhich](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/91b2a8/32.png) [@Earl\_of\_Sandwhich](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Earl_of_Sandwhich)\ **Post date:** [March 21, 2003, 3:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-give-a-last-meal/162883/18 "2003-03-21T03:52:39Z")
Doctors say that it’s a bad idea to eat within 24 hours of your execution. ``` I noticed from that site that many of the condemned ordered hamburgers "all the way." Is that a Texas expression? ``` ---
**Author:** ![Gorsnak](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gorsnak/32/7587_2.png) [@Gorsnak](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gorsnak)\ **Post date:** [March 21, 2003, 4:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-give-a-last-meal/162883/19 "2003-03-21T04:05:47Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Earl of Sandwhich \* > **Doctors say that it’s a bad idea to eat within 24 hours of your execution.** Why, because it makes you die more? 😕 :smack: It’s the execution that’s bad for you, not the last meal. ---
**Author:** ![Earl\_of\_Sandwhich](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/91b2a8/32.png) [@Earl\_of\_Sandwhich](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Earl_of_Sandwhich)\ **Post date:** [March 21, 2003, 4:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-give-a-last-meal/162883/20 "2003-03-21T04:45:58Z")
Doctors also recommend stretching exercises, especially if you’re being executed by gas chamber. : ) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-give-a-last-meal/162883.md?page=2)