Death Row Inmateâs Request Granted For âProgressive Dinnerâ Last Meal
Â Florida Governor Rick Scott quietly approved death row inmate Del Berkleyâs wish to attend a progressive dinner as per his last meal request.Berkley, convicted of homicide and armed robbery in 2008, made the request earlier this month to reportedly âspice things upâ from his usual drab prison meal routine before his scheduled execution.The progressive dinner was held last week in a neighborhood not far from the Putnam County Sheriffâs Office House of Corrections.Â  A review of the meal, written by Berkley, was published in the prisonâs newsletter under the column âBars and Spoons.ââOverall it was good,â wrote Berkley.Â  We started with a light course of appetizers at the âXâ familyâs neat suburban home.Â  Nice big windows.Â  Easy access.Â  No guard dog.âTo be honest,â Berkley wrote, âthis first course of mini entrÃ©es kind of suffered â I couldnât choke down that tiny puffed tuna casserole.Â  âAnd you thought my stare was cold and icy!â I said to the hostess. Â âIâm never coming back here again!â Â On the upside, I was allowed a glass of wine, which sure beats the crap out of the stuff I usually makeÂ in my toilet, thatâs for damn sure! Â I really appreciated that.âAfter a head count, the meal progressed to destination number two.The âYâ family decided to make me feel âat home,â so they went with a prison-themed dinner for the main course,â wrote Berkley.Â  âThey wore striped shirts and had these little plastic chains around their ankles which ticked me off a little at first, but I took it all in stride.Â  After all, I didnât want to come off as some kind of death row ingrate,â he said.âThe tin cups were funny and I gotta admit, the Yâs were very original with the dishes.Â  We started with a towering Big House salad, then we had the Pork Shank Redemption, and to finish me off, I enjoyed a cup of Midnight Espresso.Â  To call this meal a guilty pleasure would only be a half-truth,â he added.The next part of the meal was the dessert course.Â  âI wondered if I could force it all down after all that food!Â  I was so full, I thought I was gonna die!Â  Talk about âdead man walkingâ â I practically had to be carried out to the van!Â  After thanking my hosts, I was transported to my final destination.âUnbelievably, the dessert was âDeath By Chocolate Cake.â âIt was a complete coincidence,â said Berkley.Â  âMrs. âZâ told me that she had planned her menu far in advance of my visit to her ADT Alarm protected ranch style home with the sliding glass doors adjacent to the attached garage which leads to the laundry room,â he said.After the meal, when Berkley was transported back to the correctional facility, more good news awaited him.Â  Due to the national shortage of lethal chemicals used in the humane execution process, his scheduled execution was indefinitely delayed.âIs this an execution or a hunger strike?â asked Stefanie Fales, heartbroken widow of Martin Fales, Berkleyâs homicide victim.Â  âIâm calling my Congressman and the Governor!â she said.âI canât believe it,â said Berkley upon hearing the news.Â  âIâm sitting here full as a tick, happy as a clam.Â  True, itâs going to be an awful comedown once that plastic tray comes sliding through that slot tomorrow morning with those powdered eggs, but, â¦ you canât have everything!â