McAlester, Oklahoma – A man convicted of a double murder more than 20 years ago in Oklahoma City was executed on Thursday morning. Michael Dewayne Smith, 41, received a lethal injection at the Oklahoma State Penitentiary in McAlester and was pronounced dead at 10:20 a.m., according to Oklahoma Department of Corrections spokesperson Lance West.

Smith was sentenced to death for the shooting deaths of Janet Moore, 41, and Sharath Pulluru, 22, in February 2002. The execution marked the first in Oklahoma this year and the 12th since the state resumed executions in 2021 following a lengthy hiatus.

Witnesses reported that Smith appeared to struggle briefly after the first lethal drug was administered, before settling down and eventually passing away. A masked doctor confirmed his unconscious state before his death was officially announced.

During the execution, Moore’s son Phillip Zachary Jr. and niece Morgan Miller-Perkins observed from behind one-way glass. Attorney General Gentner Drummond read a statement on their behalf, expressing relief that justice had been served.

Smith’s attorney, Mark Henricksen, argued that Smith, who claimed innocence until the end, was intellectually disabled and should have been spared. However, prosecutors maintained that Smith was a gang member who committed the murders as acts of revenge.

“My deepest sorrows” – Smith expressed remorse to the victims’ families during a clemency hearing, though he denied his involvement in the crimes. The U.S. Supreme Court rejected a stay of execution requested by Smith’s legal team, who contested the validity of his confession to the police.

A complex case that spanned two decades, ending with the ultimate punishment – Smith’s execution stirred emotions on both sides, providing closure for some and raising questions of justice and humanity for others.