Today in History - January 17: 'Let's do it': Death row inmate fought any attempt to save his life
Gary Gilmore fought any effort to stop his execution. Getty
The first US prisoner to be executed after the death penalty was reinstated was killed by firing squad on January 17, 1977.
Just six months earlier, Gary Gilmore had robbed and murdered a petrol station worker, then a hotel manager the next day.
Though both victims had cooperated with the robberies, he killed them anyway.
READ MORE: The last meal request that infuriated prison officials
Gary Gilmore was executed by firing squad. Nine Archives
When he tried to throw away the gun used in both murders, it went off and shot him in the hand.
Gilmore was found soon afterwards.
The October trial took two days and the jury only needed a few hours to deliberate.
Gilmore was unusual in that he actively opposed efforts to spare his life.
Gilmore said he wanted anti-death penalty activists to "butt out".
When his mother tried to sue for a stay of execution, he fought to stop her lawsuit.
"This is my life and this is my death. It's been sanctioned by the courts that I die and I accept that," he said.
READ MORE: Death row inmate's oddly inspiring last meal request
Gary Gilmore was the first person executed after the death penalty was reinstated. Nine Archives
His last words were: "Let's do it."
Under Utah law, one person in the five-member firing squad would unknowingly be firing a blank.
This way, no-one would know for sure if they had killed the prisoner.
But when his brother looked at his body, he found there were five bullet holes in his shirt.
In a particularly macabre sketch, the comedy show Saturday Night Live sang a song called "Let's Kill Gary Gilmore for Christmas" several days before his death.
READ MORE: Death row inmate's chilling final word before his execution
Cast on Saturday Night Live performed a song called "Let's Kill Gary Gilmore for Christmas" several days before his death. NBC
Five years earlier, the United States Supreme Court had placed a moratorium on the death penalty.
The Supreme Court made the decision after an "emotionally disturbed and mentally impaired" man was sentenced to death after a one-day trial in 1968.
As a result of the moratorium, more than 600 prisoners on death row had their sentences commuted to life imprisonment.
Among those spared were Robert F Kennedy's assassin, Sirhan Sirhan, and the murderers in the Manson family.
The death penalty was reinstated after US states amended their laws to be more specific.
READ MORE: What serial killers ate as their last meal on death row
Charles Manson followers Susan Atkins, Patricia Krenwinkel and Leslie Van Houten had their death sentences commuted in 1972. AP/AAP
For more from our Today in History archive, click here
DOWNLOAD THE 9NEWS APP: Stay across all the latest in breaking news, sport, politics and the weather via our news app and get notifications sent straight to your smartphone. Available on the Apple App Store and Google Play.
Share a tip-off, video or photo with us
