10:49 a.m.
Oklahoma Director of Corrections officials told the media that the execution started at 10:06, Cole was unconscious by 10:11, and he died at 10:22. They confirmed the execution went "smoothly and without complications" this morning.
They confirmed Cole denied a requested final meal so he was served the facility's standard religious meal of vegetarian lasagna, salad with dressing, a tortilla, and a fruit drink packet. He also denied having a special advisor with him in his final moments.
Dr. Brian Young, uncle of Brianna, and Donna Daniel, aunt of Brianna, chose to speak and give their thoughts on Cole's execution.
Daniel thanked the State for "taking care" of the families of the victim, Brianna Cole. She told the media that she hoped today would "help advocate for victims" to get justice.
"We should not have to wait 20 years for a nine-month-old baby to get her justice," says Daniel. "He should've been executed many years ago."
Daniel recounted how her son is now 21 and never got to meet Brianna, who would've turned 20 this year. She also shared how the first time she met Brianna was at her funeral.
Young complimented ODOC for their professionalism, especially since this is the family's second time going through this experience.
Cole originally was scheduled to be executed in 2015, but executions in Oklahoma were postponed indefinitely after a botched lethal injection left an inmate writing in pain on a gurney in 2014 and a mix-up in drugs in 2015, according to the Associated Press.
Both Young and Daniel say the next steps for the family are "to go back to as normal as [they] can be" despite not knowing Brianna.
The Associated Press's Sean Murphy is the first of five media witnesses to talk about his observations.
Murphy says Cole's final words were saying that Jesus was his Lord and Savior, that he would pray for the State of Oklahoma, and that he forgave every person that he had wronged.
The remaining media witnesses' testimony did not report anything that contradicted officials, the family's or Murphy's observations.
Cole's attorney, Tom Hird released a statement about the execution:
“Benjamin Cole was a person with serious mental illness whose schizophrenia and brain damage went undiagnosed and untreated for many years, eventually leading to the tragic crime for which he was executed. Over his years on death row, Ben slipped into a world of delusion and darkness. Although I represented him for many years, he was often unable to interact with my colleagues and me in any meaningful way. As Ben’s physical health deteriorated along with his mind, he became progressively more detached from reality, refusing to leave his cell, moving little and with difficulty, and rarely speaking to anyone.
“It is unconscionable that the State denied Ben a competency trial. Ben lacked a rational understanding of why Oklahoma took his life today. As Oklahoma proceeds with its relentless march to execute one mentally ill, traumatized man after another, we should pause to ask whether this is really who we are, and who we want to be.”
10:22 a.m.
Oklahoma executed Benjamin Cole. His time of death is reported as 10:22 a.m.
Media witnesses will report their observations after leaving the execution chamber.
6:00 a.m.
Preparations are now underway in McAlester for the scheduled execution of Benjamin Cole on Thursday morning.
Cole is sentenced to death in the 2002 killing of his 9-month-old daughter in Rogers County. He's one of several inmates scheduled for execution over the next few months.
READ MORE: Execution dates set for six Oklahoma death row inmates
The Oklahoma Pardon and Parole Board voted to not recommend clemency for Cole in late September.
This marks the second execution to resume after weeks of debates earlier in the year about whether the state's execution methods are constitutional and violated death row inmates' rights.
Descriptions from witnesses caused some to question if the execution went as planned, but the Oklahoma Department of Corrections says it went "without complications."
Since then, many death row inmates and their legal teams have submitted requests to courts to put a pause on executions.
The courts put a hold on executions to determine the requests. Months later, a judge ruled that Oklahoma can continue with its executions by lethal injection, ruling that the inmates in this case "have fallen well short" of proving that the method of execution violates their constitutional rights.
ODOC announced shortly after the decision they would resume executions this year.
Months later, a federal appeals court affirmed this decision by siding with the State of Oklahoma ruling that the state's execution protocol does not violate the U.S. Constitution or other federal laws in the U.S.
Cole's attorneys requested a trial to determine his competency, saying Cole suffers from severe mental illnesses, including brain damage and paranoid schizophrenia. The Pittsburg Country District Court later denied this request.
According to the Associated Press, the U.S. Supreme Court on Wednesday denied a last-minute appeal filed by Oklahoma death row inmate Benjamin Cole, paving the way for his scheduled execution to continue as planned.
READ MORE: Clemency hearing dates announced for 6 death row inmates
Cole is scheduled to be executed at 10 a.m. at the Oklahoma State Penitentiary.
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