The state of Arizona is scheduled to execute Richard Djerf, 55, on Friday by lethal injection for his vengeful killing of a co-worker’s four family members in the 1990s.
Djerf has apologized for the pain he’s caused and not tried to escape the death penalty.
Barry Jones spent decades on death row until he was freed a couple years ago.
“The best friend I had while I was in prison is Richard Djerf," said Jones.
In 1993, prosecutors say Djerf went on a rampage of revenge believing a co-worker burglarized his home. Djerf killed the man's parents and 5-year-old brother, and raped and killed the boy's 18-year-old sister.
He pleaded guilty to murder in the deaths of Albert Luna Sr. and Patricia Luna; their daughter Rochelle Luna, 18; and son Damien Luna, 5, at their home on Sept. 14, 1993. Djerf, who has been in prison for over 29 years, chose not to seek clemency.
Jones describes Djerf as an amazing artist and chef who specialized in making burritos for fellow inmates.
“They’re going to kill a good man on Friday. I’m not saying he ain’t done nothing wrong. He did. He done something awful. But he’s a good man. He’s just a good man that done a bad thing,” said Jones.
Djerf is scheduled to be the second person executed in Arizona this year.
Jones now lives in Tucson. He had been returning to prison since June to visit Djerf. Jones will not attend Djerf’s execution.
“Me and Djerf, we just had a special bond. I wasn’t with him all the time in prison. But I was always around him because death row is like a prison within a prison,” said Jones.
Arizona last carried out a death sentence in mid-March, executing Aaron Brian Gunches for the 2002 killing of Ted Price.
There are currently 108 prisoners on the state's death row.
Associated Press contributed to this report.
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You might be surprised to learn that there was a time in American history when the death penalty was illegal — everywhere. In 1972, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that all of the death penalty laws around the country violated the Constitution. They were, essentially, too arbitrary.
