McVeigh's father says his son won't apologize

William Mcveigh allowed CNN to take his picture outside of his home on Friday

PENDLETON, New York -- The father of convicted Oklahoma City bomber Timothy McVeigh says his son refuses to apologize for the explosion at the Murrah Federal Building that killed 168 people, and is ready to die for his crimes.

"I asked him if he would apologize, and he says, 'No.' He said, if he did apologize, he'd make a lot of people happy, but he'd be lying," William McVeigh told CNN's Susan Candiotti at his home on Friday.

In an interview that he asked not be recorded, McVeigh said he and his daughter, Jennifer, had a final visit with Timothy on April 10 on death row at the federal prison in Terre Haute, Indiana.

GALLERY Painful memories in Oklahoma City     IN-DEPTH • A shattering explosion • Multimedia flashback • Pain and memories persist • Memorial images     CNNfyi.com Lesson Plan: Oklahoma City remembers     MESSAGE BOARD Death penalty     ALSO In a letter, pope asks Bush to spare McVeigh

Timothy McVeigh will be executed May 16 for the 1995 bombing.

William McVeigh said he still doesn't understand why his son did what he did. Timothy confessed to him during that last visit, McVeigh said, but expressed no remorse for the bombing.

"I asked him why. He gave me the whole list of reasons. But it didn't make much sense to me. It was a bunch of stuff the government did, and the last straw was Waco," McVeigh said.

He will not attend the execution, at his son's bidding, nor will any other family members. But McVeigh said he discussed the execution with his son during their visit and Timothy didn't seem bothered by it.

"He seems happy. You can joke and talk about it. He says he's ready to die. Don't seem to bother him," McVeigh said.

Monday was Timothy McVeigh's 33rd birthday. His father sent him a card and asked him to call, but he hasn't yet heard from him.

In any event, he has already said goodbye to his son at the end of their final death-row visit.

McVeigh turned down a prison offer to allow him to hug his family, opting to remain behind a glass partition with his hands cuffed.

"He walked back and put his hands up to the glass (against my hands)," McVeigh said. "He smiled ... and off he went."

Oklahoma City remembers
April 19, 2001
U.S. wants McVeigh webcast lawsuit dismissed
April 13, 2001
Bill Press: McVeigh to die on television
April 13, 2001
Ashcroft OKs closed TV feed of McVeigh execution
April 11, 2001
FBI: McVeigh knew children would be killed in OKC blast
March 29, 2001
McVeigh autopsy deal says no 'invasive procedure'
March 19, 2001
McVeigh scheduled to die by lethal injection May 16
January 16, 2001
Judge says McVeigh can drop appeals
December 28, 2000

Federal Bureau of Investigation
U.S. Department of Justice
The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms
Oklahoma State Government
Death Penalty Information Center
U.S. Federal Bureau of Prisons

Note: Pages will open in a new browser window

External sites are not endorsed by CNN Interactive.