Charles Brooks Jr. facts for kids
Charles Brooks Jr. (born September 1, 1942 – died December 7, 1982), also known as Shareef Ahmad Abdul-Rahim, was a person who faced the death penalty. He was the first person in the United States to have his sentence carried out using lethal injection. This was a new method at the time. He was also the first prisoner in Texas to have a death sentence carried out since 1964. He was the first African-American person to have a death sentence carried out in the United States in a long time.
Biography
Early life
Charles Brooks Jr. grew up in a family in Fort Worth, Texas. He went to I.M. Terrell High School. While there, he played football.
He had been in prison before at the United States Penitentiary, Leavenworth.
Later life and his sentence
While in prison, Brooks became a Muslim. He changed his name to Shareef Ahmad Abdul-Rahim.
His appeals to stop his sentence from being carried out were not successful. The Supreme Court of the United States did not agree to stop it. A special board in Texas also recommended that the sentence go forward.
Brooks was held in a special prison area for people facing the death penalty. This area was at the Ellis Unit prison.
Before his sentence was carried out, he had a last meal. It included a T-bone steak, french fries, ketchup, Worcestershire sauce, biscuits, peach cobbler, and iced tea.
Then, Brooks was moved to a special room at the Huntsville Unit in Huntsville, Texas. There, he said his final words and a prayer.
Charles Brooks Jr.'s sentence was carried out on December 7, 1982. He was 40 years old.
See also
- Capital punishment in Texas
- Capital punishment in the United States
- List of people executed in Texas, 1982–1989
In Spanish: Charles Brooks para niños
