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Demetrius Terrance Frazier, a 52-year-old inmate convicted of multiple rapes and murders, was executed by nitrogen gas in Alabama on Thursday evening. Just before 6:30 p.m., moments before his death, Frazier delivered a final statement that was both apologetic and defiant.
Last Words
“First of all, I want to apologize to the family and friends of Pauline Brown. What happened to Pauline Brown should have never happened,” Frazier said. However, he then directed his final words towards Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer.
“If you cannot stand up for the constitution of Michigan, how are you going to stand up for the U.S. Constitution when you run for president?” he remarked, seemingly criticizing Whitmer for what he perceived as her failure to intervene in his case.
His last words concluded with a message to fellow death row inmates: “Detroit strong. I love everyone on death row. Let’s go.”
Demetrius Terrance Frazier: Mother’s Plea for Clemency
Prior to his execution, Frazier’s mother, Carol Frazier, made an emotional appeal to Governor Whitmer, urging her to bring her son back to Michigan to complete his life sentence.
“Please bring my son back to Michigan. Please don’t let Alabama kill my son if you can stop it,” she wrote in a letter.
Michigan, unlike Alabama, does not permit the death penalty. However, Whitmer explained to The Detroit News that her predecessor, Rick Snyder, had already authorized Frazier’s transfer to Alabama.
“It’s a really tough situation,” Whitmer told the outlet. “I understand the pleas and concerns. Michigan is not a death penalty state.”
Brutal Crime in 1991 by Demetrius Terrance Frazier
Frazier was convicted for the 1991 rape and murder of 41-year-old Pauline Brown in Birmingham, Alabama. Prosecutors stated that on November 27, 1991, the then-19-year-old Frazier broke into Brown’s apartment while she was asleep. He demanded money, and after she handed him $80 from her purse, he raped her at gunpoint before fatally shooting her in the head.
Shockingly, prosecutors revealed that Frazier later returned to the crime scene to eat a snack and search for more money.
Legal History and Execution Details
Before his conviction in Alabama, Frazier was already serving a life sentence in Michigan for the 1992 murder of 14-year-old Crystal Kendrick. In 1996, an Alabama jury found him guilty of Brown’s murder, voting 10-2 in favor of a death sentence.
Frazier remained in Michigan’s custody until 2011, when the governors of Michigan and Alabama agreed to transfer him to Alabama’s death row. His execution on Thursday marked the first in Alabama this year and the third in the United States in 2025, following recent executions in Texas and South Carolina.
Execution Carried Out by Nitrogen Hypoxia
The execution process began at approximately 6:10 p.m., when a corrections officer conducted a final check on Frazier’s restraints and gas mask.
According to witnesses, his breathing slowed at 6:14 p.m., reducing to sporadic gasps. By 6:21 p.m., he showed no signs of physical movement. The curtains to the execution chamber closed at 6:29 p.m.
Alabama Corrections Commissioner John Hamm later confirmed that nitrogen gas was administered for about 18 minutes and that medical instruments indicated Frazier had no heartbeat 13 minutes after the process began.
Alabama Governor’s Statement on Execution
Following the execution, Alabama Governor Kay Ivey, 80, issued a statement emphasizing the state’s stance on crime and justice.
“In Alabama, we enforce the law. You don’t come to our state and mess with our citizens and get away with it,” she stated. “Rapists and murderers are not welcome on our streets, and tonight, justice was carried out for Pauline Brown and her loved ones.”
