A death row inmate was executed Wednesday at the Texas state penitentiary in Huntsville for the March 2007 murder of a Dallas Police officer.
Wesley Ruiz, 43, received the lethal injection after addressing the family of victim Mark Nix who was present and watched the execution through a window.
“I would like to apologize to Mark and The Nix family for taking him away from you,” Ruiz told the late senior corporal's relatives as he layed strapped to a gurney but without looking at them. “I hope this brings you closure.”
Ruiz also thanked his family and loved ones for their support and asked his children to “stand tall and continue to make me proud.”
“Don't worry about me. I'm ready to fly. All right, warden, I'm ready to ride,” he added.
The inmate then received the lethal dose of pentobarbital, took two quick breaths, and started snoring. The 11th snore was the last and he was pronounced dead twenty-two minutes later at 6:41 p.m.
Ruiz fatally shot 33-year-old Nix following a high-speed chase 16 years ago. The bullet struck Nix's badge and sent fragments into his artery, severing it.
