Stephen Vrabel. Volunteer

Stephen Vrabel was executed, for the aggravated murders of his live-in companion, Susan Clemente, 29, and the couple's 3-year-old daughter, Lisa Clemente, in 1989.

After shooting his live-in girlfriend of almost four years and their daughter, he placed Clemente's body in the refrigerator and Lisa's body in the freezer. He continued living at the apartment for several weeks before leaving the city.
A relative discovered the bodies soon after Vrabel left town, when he stopped by to collect the rent. When Vrabel learned that the bodies had been discovered, he turned himself in to authorities and confessed to the murders.

According to information released by the Supreme Court of Ohio, Vrabel subsequently was found to be incapable of assisting in his own defense as a result of mental illness, and therefore incompetent to stand trial. In 1994, after five years of confinement in mental hospitals, Vrabel was found sufficiently recovered to stand trial. Throughout his trial, Vrabel occasionally refused to cooperate with his attorneys and repeatedly petitioned the court to let him represent himself. After being found guilty, he elected to introduce his own statement as his only evidence in mitigation.

During an interview reported by Vindy.com , the day before his execution, he gave no reason for murdering Susan Clemente and described Lisa as being "the perfect child." He explained that he placed the bodies in the freezer as an attempt to slow down decomposition, "somehow, at first I thought I could bring Lisa back to life or something like that," said Vrabel.
His last words where,"I want to thank my sister for all the joy and happiness she brought into Lisa's life, and I want to apologize to anyone I may have wronged in my life."

He was pronounced dead by lethal injection, at 10:14 a.m. at the Southern Ohio Correctional Facility

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