Gov. Rick Scott signed a death warrant for Bolin in October for the murder of Teri Lynn Matthews, who was abducted from a Land O’ Lakes post office, raped, beaten and stabbed to death on December 5, 1986.
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Bolin, 53, was pronounced dead at 10:16 p.m., 11 minutes after the execution began.
Matthews’ mother, Kathleen Reeves, told NBC News this week that she has no doubt that Bolin – who was convicted after his brother and ex-wife testified against him – killed her daughter, a bank worker.
Bolin exemplified why the death penalty is necessary.
He appealed all his convictions and was retried for each of the killings on procedural grounds, but was again convicted.
His sentence for the Holley killing was changed to life in prison after a jury changed the verdict to second degree murder. FILE – In this Thursday, April 19, 2012, file photo, Oscar Ray Bolin Jr., center, watches as the jurors walk into the courtroom in Tampa.
One of his most outspoken defenders has been his wife, Rosalie, who was once a member of his defense team.
At the time, Bolin was already serving a prison sentence in OH for kidnapping and raping a 20-year-old waitress near Toledo in 1987.
Natalie Holley’s sister, Anita Holley, told the Tampa Bay Times she would attend the execution.
It is a disgrace this remorseless monster was able to relish the limelight for almost 30 years after murdering three young Tampa Bay area women.
(Reeves) “Perhaps now too, Teri will have her peace”.
He also met with a catholic spiritual adviser for two hours and was “calm and in good spirits”, said McKinley Lewis, communications director for the depth of corrections.
In all, he was convicted 10 times by 10 juries, an outrageous abuse of the system.
Bolin was set to die by lethal injection at 6 p.m. Thursday at the Florida State Prison in Starke.
His last meal consisted of rib-eye steak, baked potato, lemon meringue pie and Coca-Cola.
“He dies for all of our girls”.
“God bless you Phillip for your courage”, Reeves said, “and for doing the right thing”. Over the decades, the mothers of all three women have endured trials and re-trials. He argued that all the evidence used to convict him was both tampered with and planted.
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While on trial, Bolin and a woman on his defense team fell in love. It’s my release. My punishment’s over. I think that would be the ideal punishment, and I think that would be terrifying to him. Rosalie Martinez divorced her husband, a prominent Tampa attorney, to marry the inmate, who she has worked to clear since.
