Robbie Lyons was executed at Raleigh’s Central Prison on Dec. 5, 2003. He was 31 years old. Alfred Rivera, who was Robbie’s friend on death row, described him as “a big joyful kid at heart who loved to play around.”
I’m not a mad man
Nor am I a bad man.
I’m just a man that didn’t live a life like yours.
I’ve always wished to be a glad man
But I’ve often been a sad man
Just like now, as I stand in the court of law.
There’s a quote I’ve always kept in my head
Which was something a wise man once said
Which is, “A wise man learns from his mistakes.”
I’ve learned and realized
And I’ve opened my eyes
And acknowledged that my mistake was great.
By this mistake I often regret
And many times my eyes become wet
And to God I have often prayed
To take away my sins
And to make me whole again
Because only God knows how much I am afraid.
No, I’m not a mad man
Nor am I a bad man.
I’m just a man that didn’t live a life like yours.
I just wanted to be a glad man
Not a lonely or sad man.
I’m just a man, earnestly seeking to live life once more.
