This is what a condemned inmates' last hours are like on Indiana's death row

It's called X Row.

This block of 21 cells is segregated from the general population at the Indiana State Prison in Michigan City. Eight condemned men are here, biding time until courtroom battles decide if the state can resume using the lethal chemicals that will end their lives.

Life on X Row

X Row has been described as a lonely place.

"Once you get here, you lose just about everybody you have," Gregory Scott Johnson told the Fort Wayne News Sentinel in 1997. "What goes on in your mind is the hardest part."

Johnson was executed May 25, 2005, for stomping 82-year-old Ruby Hutslar to death before burning down her home in Anderson.

Before he died, Johnson told reporters about his sparse life on Indiana's X Row. The place hasn't change much in the 14 years since the state of Indiana put an end to Johnson's life, according to the Indiana Department of Correction.

Johnson said he spent 21 hours a day in a windowless 9-by-12-foot cell.

A 12-by-9-foot cell in X Row is double the normal cell size, with one offender per cell.  An offender may purchase a TV. A table is provided by the prison.

Metal bars make up one wall. A bed, a table with shelves, and a stainless steel combination sink and toilet are the only furniture. 

There is no privacy. Lights are always on.

Six days a week, Johnson got three hours a day out of his cell for recreation.Twice a week in good weather, two of those hours are spent in a caged outdoor area about half the size of a basketball court, Johnson said.

Now inmates get four hours of recreation a day, according to Indiana State Prison spokeswoman Pam James.

Indianapolis Star reporter Vic Ryckaert, left, interviews Death Row inmate Gregory Scott Johnson, 40, at the Indiana State Prison in Michigan City on Tuesday, May 10, 2005.

The end nears

Preparations for a execution begin once appeals are exhausted and the Indiana Supreme Court sets a date, IDOC spokesman Dave Bursten said. That's usually about two months of lead time.

The prison assigns a coordinator to the inmate, someone who helps cut through red tape to line up visitors, final written statements and the ordering of a last meal.

Soon after the Supreme Court sets the execution date, guards move the condemned man into the first cell closest to the correctional officer's station.

Inmates say their goodbyes in their last 48 hours. They can make unrestricted phone calls and get to visit with family, friends and lawyers at two-hour intervals from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.

Pastors, imams, priests and other clergy can stay longer, usually until 10 p.m.

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Matthew Eric Wrinkles

Matthew E. Wrinkles, convicted of killing his estranged wife, her brother and her sister-in-law, saw fewer than 15 visitors during his final two days in December 2009, the Times of Northwest Indiana reported.

During that time he made what a prison spokesman called a "good number" of phone calls, including to people he had corresponded with in the Netherlands.

The visitors left at 4 p.m. Wrinkles showered then met with clergy, who stayed with him until 11 p.m., the Times reported.

The special meal

The last meal, or what Indiana calls a "special meal," must be ordered from a local restaurant and must be eaten within four hours.

The meal is served 48 to 36 hours before the execution and the condemned may share food with visitors. 

Johnson in 2005 ordered ribs, pulled pork, sauteed mushrooms, soda and chocolate cheesecake (he wanted Oreo pie, but the restaurant was out), IndyStar reported at the time. Johnson ordered pizza for his attorneys.

In 2009, Wrinkles was served prime rib with a loaded baked potato, pork chops with steak fries and two salads with ranch dressing and rolls, the Times of Northwest Indiana reported.

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A group of protesters mainly from the Duneland Coalition to Abolish the Death Penalty braved the 11 degree temperature for Matthew Eric Wrinkles, who was put to death in 2009.

The execution

As midnight of the execution day nears, the condemned is moved out of X Row and into a holding cell, where he has a TV and a phone.

A 12-by-9-foot cell in X Row is double the normal cell size, with one offender per cell.  An offender may purchase a TV. A table is provided by the prison.

Offenders are given a chance to write down a final statement as the execution nears. They get another chance for a last verbal statement in the minutes before the lethal chemical cocktail is injected into their body.

Johnson's last statement criticized the Indiana Parole Board for refusing to allow him to donate his liver to his seriously ill sister. He also thanked the people who offered support and prayers.

"I'll see you on the other side," he wrote.

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Death Row inmate Gregory Scott Johnson, 40, sits in the Indiana State Prison in Michigan City on Tuesday, May 10, 2005, awaiting his execution.

Wrinkles, in his written statement, said he was "not proud of the man I was. But I am know (sic) longer that man."

The last words Wrinkles uttered before his execution were: "Let's get it done. Let's lock and load ... it's plagiarized but what the hell."

After midnight and before sunrise, the state administers the fatal drugs.

The offender's body is released to a funeral home as requested by the next of kin. If no one claims the body, he is cremated and buried at the cemetery at the Indiana State Prison.

Contact IndyStar reporter Vic Ryckaert at 317-444-2701 or vic.ryckaert@indystar.com. Follow him on Twitter: @VicRyc.