Reason man ordered controversial death row meal that forced Texas tradition to be scrapped

Death row inmates are no longer allowed a final meal before their execution for a particular reason.

Arthur Lee Burton became the third person to be put to death in the US state of Texas so far this year after spending more than 25 years behind bars.

The 54-year-old was executed via lethal injection for the 1999 murder of mother-of-three Nancy Adleman, 48, who he attacked while on the way home from an evening jog in Houston.

It came after double murderer Ivan Abner Cantu was given the ultimate punishment in February this year, which was followed by the execution of Ramiro Felix Gonzales, who kidnapped, raped and murdered 18-year-old Bridget Townsend.

Each of them were put to death by lethal injection, and each of them left this world without getting the last taste of freedom which death row prisoners are granted - a final meal.

And they've only got one bloke to blame for them going out hungry.

Lawrence Russell Brewer is probably the enemy of every single death row inmate in the state due to the fact he managed to spoil it for everyone because of his actions in the lead up to his execution on 21 September, 2011.

The 44-year-old was jailed alongside three other men for horrifically killing James Byrd Jr. by dragging him along behind a pick-up truck for three-miles in 1998.

Brewer and his accomplice John King were the first white men to receive the death penalty for killing a black man in modern Texas, and their atrocities prompted the state to introduce new laws surrounding hate crimes.

Another accomplice, Shawn Berry, was sentenced to life imprisonment for the crime.

Lawrence Russell Brewer's greediness ended up spoiling it for everyone (Buck Kelly/Getty Images)

Between the 13-years that passed between his sentencing and his execution date, Brewer had plenty of time to stew over what he would like to order as his last meal.

This customary ritual had been in place since around 1924 in Texas and although each US state has its own specific rules surrounding it, the general idea is that you can have what you like - within reason.

Brewer took full advantage of this - and to be quite honest, he took the absolute p*ss.

According to a report from the time which was published in the Houston Chronicle, Brewer asked for a bowl of fried okra with ketchup, two chicken steaks with gravy and onions, and a cheese omelette with ground beef, jalapenos and bell peppers...but he didn't stop there.

On top of that, he also wanted: "A triple-meat bacon cheeseburger, three fajitas, one pound of barbecue and a half loaf of white bread, pizza meat lover's special, one pint of 'homemade vanilla' Blue Bell ice cream, one slab of peanut butter fudge with crushed peanuts and three root beers."

John Whitmire decided to scrap the last meal tradition entirely in 2011 (Jon Shapley/Houston Chronicle via Getty Images)

But when the meal was put before him, he refused to eat any of it and insisted he wasn't hungry.

Keen not to let any other death row inmates make a mockery of the justice system with their last meal again, Senator Whitmire decided to get rid of the tradition altogether - so now, they simply eat what's being served in the prison that day.

Speaking of his decision to scrap the custom, Whitmire - who is Houston's mayor - explained that he wanted to make it clear to those on death row that they aren't the ones who hold the cards.

He told news channel KXAN in 2011: "He's a bad person and it might very well be as simple as he was just trying to show us...he would just show us that we couldn't control things right up to the end.

"Why didn't someone use some judgment and put that to a stop?

Whitmire continued: "Can you imagine the victim's family - who were there to witness the execution - knowing that this killer of their brother was getting these kind of special treatments?

"It's just wrong and it will - it has - ended."

The Texas lawmaker also later called for the state to stop publicly reading the final statements of those who are executed after Brewer's accomplice, King, refused to say anything while he was still in his final moments, but left something to be read out afterwards.

In a letter to prison officials, Whitmire fumed: "If a death row inmate has something to say to the public or victims, let him or her say it when they are strapped to the gurney."

King's statement read: "Capital punishment: them without the capital get the punishment."