“Three Bullets to the Heart”: South Carolina Executes Inmate by Firing Squad in One of Nation’s Most Brutal Killings
By James Seidel | Crime and Cask News Network – Justice Watch: South Carolina
COLUMBIA, SC — In a rare and highly controversial act of state-sanctioned punishment, South Carolina executed death row inmate Mikal Mahdi by firing squad on a cool and rainy Friday night in Columbia, SS.C., for the 2004 ambush murder and incineration of an off-duty police officer.
Mahdi, 42, was pronounced dead at 6:05 p.m., after three volunteer corrections officers fired synchronized rifle shots at a target over his heart from 15 feet away. A hood was placed over his head, and Mahdi offered no last words.
The method—once relegated to the annals of 19th-century justice—is now officially back in use in South Carolina. Friday’s execution marked the second firing squad execution in the state this year, and just the fifth in the United States since 1977.
A Firing Squad Returns to American Soil
According to eyewitnesses,
was restrained in a metal chair, a hood over his head, in a secure chamber adjacent to the state’s electric chair. The rifles were fired through a slot in the wall.
An Associated Press reporter in the room said Mahdi cried out as the bullets struck, then groaned twice, continuing to breathe for another 80 seconds before a final gasp.
“It was barbaric,” said Mahdi’s attorney, David Weiss, who was present. “This belongs in the darkest chapters of history—not in a civilized society.”
Mikal Mahdi SCDC Records.
The Crime That Sealed His Fate
On July 14, 2004, then-21-year-old Mahdi launched a four-state violent crime spree. After murdering a gas station clerk in North Carolina, he carjacked a man in Columbia, and ultimately made his way to Orangeburg County, where he ambushed Capt. James Myers, a decorated off-duty police officer.
Court records describe how Mahdi:
Broke into Myers’ shed
Waited for him to arrive
Shot him nine times
Poured diesel fuel over his body
Set him on fire
Myers’ wife, Amy Tripp Myers, later discovered the horrific scene at the exact spot where the couple had been married years earlier.
“I found the love of my life, my soulmate, lifeless, lying in a pool of blood,” she told the court through tears. “I haven’t been the same person since. I died that night too.”
⚖️ Prosecutors: “The Epitome of Evil”
During Mahdi’s trial, prosecutor David Pascoe told jurors, “His heart and mind are full of hate and malice… he is the epitome of evil.” Pascoe recently switched his party affiliation from democrat to republican, a move some seen as political with Pascoe having his eye on the Attorney General’s office. He may have to fight Creighton Waters for that job.
Mahdi never denied the killing.
In a letter shared by his legal team, Mahdi wrote:
“I’m guilty as hell… What I’ve done is irredeemable.”
Childhood Trauma and a Defense Too Late
Attorneys argued that Mahdi suffered from untreated mental illness, severe childhood abuse, and years in solitary confinement before he ever committed a crime.
Suicidal by age 8
Diagnosed with major depressive disorder at 9
Pulled from school by a paranoid father
Spent much of his youth in isolation cells in juvenile detention
Despite these revelations, defense attorneys said his original trial team spent less than 30 minutes arguing against the death penalty.
“That’s not justice,” said attorney David Weiss. “That’s barely a Law & Order episode.”
Final Meal
Mahdi’s last meal included:
Ribeye steak
Mushroom risotto
Broccoli and collard greens
Cheesecake
Sweet tea
⚰️ The Return of the Firing Squad
South Carolina is one of five states where firing squad executions are legal, joining Utah, Mississippi, Oklahoma, and Idaho. In 2025 alone, South Carolina has now executed two inmates by firing squad—the only U.S. state to do so in over a decade, and the CC News Newtwork has covered them live for you.
“It’s a bloody spectacle,” said Gerald “Bo” King, attorney for Brad Keith Sigmon, who was executed last month the same way. “And it’s happening right here in South Carolina.”
Mahdi’s choice of the firing squad came after concerns that lethal injection drugs were unreliable and that the electric chair risked mutilation.
Upcoming Executions in the U.S.
Mahdi was the 12th inmate executed in the U.S. in 2025, and the third in South Carolina.
Upcoming executions:
April 23: Moises Sandoval Mendoza (Texas)
April 24: James Osgood (Alabama)
Steven Bixby (South Carolina) – Originally scheduled as the sixth inmate in the execution sequence, Bixby’s execution has been postponed pending a mental competency hearing.
At least 25 more executions are scheduled nationwide this year.
Crime and Cask View
South Carolina’s embrace of firing squads has turned the Palmetto State into ground zero for a national death penalty debate. As Mahdi’s death confirms, the state is not just reviving old laws—it’s reviving old methods. And the line between justice and vengeance is growing increasingly thin.
