Gary Lee Roll
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Gary Lee Roll (November 22, 1951 - August 30, 2000) was executed by lethal injection in the state of Missouri. He was convicted of the murders of 3 members of the Sheper family in Cape Girardeau, Missouri during a robbery in 1992. Roll shot the mother and one son with his pistol and stabbed the other with a hunting knife. The robbers made off with approximately 12 ounces of marijuana and $214 cash. A taped conversation where Roll admitted to the murders was turned into police by an accomplice. He was arrested in November 1992, pleaded guilty of all counts, and was sentenced to death in November 1993. His attorneys filed few appeals of his sentence and he did not actively seek to avoid it. He reportedly had chronic jaw pain from an injury incurred while serving in the United States military and was healing from breaking his leg after a fall from his roof and consumed recreational drugs to lessen the pain. Roll was reportedly under the influence of alcohol, marijuana, and 4 to 6 "hits" of LSD at the time of his crimes. It has been theorized that when faced with a decision between life in prison with pain and no drugs and death, Roll preferred his death sentence. He was executed on his originally scheduled date of August 30, 2000.
