A man from Utah, who had been on death row for 37 years and developed dementia, passed away Wednesday from what appears to be natural causes, as reported by the state’s Department of Corrections.
Ralph Leroy Menzies, aged 67, was set to be executed by firing squad in September. However, in August, the Utah Supreme Court intervened, halting the execution after his attorney argued that his dementia had progressed significantly. A judge has now scheduled a new competency hearing to reassess Menzies’s mental state in mid-December.
Menzies was found guilty in 1986 of kidnapping Maureen Hunsaker from a convenience store near Salt Lake City and subsequently murdering her. Her body was discovered just two days later.
Jim Hunsaker, Maureen’s husband, shared with the Associated Press that he felt a sense of relief, almost as if a heavy weight had been lifted off his shoulders, upon hearing of Menzies’s death.
“I think a lot of it is healing now,” he stated. He went on to express that not a day went by without thinking about the tragedy.
Hunsaker also voiced his dissatisfaction with the way the judicial process handled the case, noting that his family endured “disappointment after disappointment” over the years.
Menzies would have been the seventh individual executed by firing squad in the U.S. since 1977, a method he chose years ago. The Utah Supreme Court mentioned earlier this summer that the severity of Menzies’s illness brought serious doubts about his suitability for the death penalty.
Medical experts in a recent report agreed, indicating that Menzies did not fully grasp the reasons behind facing execution.
Utah Attorney General Derek Brown remarked on Hunsaker’s tragic death, stating, “Maureen Hunsaker was a beloved wife and mother whose life was taken in a horrific act of violence by Ralph Menzies.” He added that the pursuit of justice for her has been a long and painful journey.
Menzies had abducted Hunsaker, who was on parole, from the store on February 23, 1986. She managed to contact her husband to report that she had been robbed and kidnapped, and mentioned that her captors were planning to release her. Tragically, her body was found two days later in Big Cottonwood Canyon, and she had been strangled and had suffered a fatal neck wound.
Evidence against Menzies included Hunsaker’s thumbprint on his vehicle and her handbag found in his apartment. He also had her wallet and various belongings when he was arrested for an unrelated charge.
The defense team expressed gratitude that Menzies died of natural causes, maintaining his health and dignity until the end.
Utah’s last execution took place through lethal injection a bit over a year ago. The state hasn’t utilized firing squads since Ronnie Lee Gardner was executed in 2010.
