Richard Lee Tabler, a 46-year-old death row inmate in Texas, expressed remorse and sought forgiveness before his execution on Thursday. Tabler was sentenced to death for the murder of his strip club manager and another man two decades ago. He also confessed to the killings of two teenage dancers at the club. During his time in prison, Tabler claimed to have found religion.
As he lay on the death chamber gurney, Tabler addressed the victims’ families who were observing through a nearby window. He admitted that he had no right to take their loved ones away and expressed his hope for their forgiveness. He acknowledged that no amount of apologies could bring back their loved ones.
Tabler expressed his regret to the victims’ families, stating that not a day passed without him regretting his actions. He thanked the prison officials for their compassion, which he said had helped him change and become a better person.
After several apologies, Tabler expressed his belief that his execution marked the beginning of a new life for him in heaven. He told the warden at the state penitentiary in Huntsville, “I am finished,” and as the lethal drugs began to take effect, he mouthed, “I’m sorry.”
In 2004, Tabler lured Mohammed-Amine Rahmouni, 28, and Haitham Zayed, 25, to a remote area near Killeen in Central Texas under the guise of buying stolen stereo equipment. He then shot and killed them. Rahmouni was the co-owner of a club called TeaZers, and he and Tabler had had a falling out.
Two days later, Tabler shot and killed Tiffany Loraine Dotson, an 18-year-old dancer at the club, and another dancer, 16-year-old Amanda Benefield. Tabler was convicted of killing the two men, and prosecutors did not pursue the conviction for the young women’s murders.
Dotson’s father, George, was among the witnesses at the execution. He did not comment on Tabler’s apologies, stating that he needed time to process what he had witnessed. He expressed relief at finally seeing justice served after 20 years.
During his trial, prosecutors presented Tabler’s written and videotaped statements in which he admitted to killing Dotson and Benefield out of fear that they would reveal his crimes. Tabler had repeatedly requested the courts to halt his appeals and proceed with his execution, leading his lawyers to question his mental competence.
In 2008, Tabler caused a major lockdown in the state’s prison system when he smuggled a cellphone into the state penitentiary in Huntsville and made death threats to then-state Sen. John Whitmire, who is now the mayor of Houston.