Governor Kay Ivey is commuting the sentence of Alabama death row inmate Charles “Sonny” Burton. He had spent the last thirty years awaiting execution for the 1991 killing of Doug Battle at a Talladega AutoZone store. Burton’s case attracted national attention since he did not pull the trigger. Prosecutors charged him under what’s known as felony murder. That law makes a convicted offender as guilty as the person who committed the killing.
In Charles Burton’s case, the actual gunman was Derrick DeBruce. He was ultimately sentenced to life without parole after the courts ruled that he did not receive adequate legal representation. Burton was still scheduled to die nitrogen hypoxia, until Governor Ivey’s decision to commute his sentence to one of life in prison without parole, like DeBruce.
“Doug Battle was brutally murdered by Derrick DeBruce while shopping in an auto parts store,” Ivey in a press release. “But DeBruce was ultimately sentenced to life without parole. Charles Burton did not shoot the victim, did not direct the triggerman to shoot the victim and had already left the store by the time the shooting occurred. Yet Mr. Burton was set to be executed while DeBruce was allowed to live out his life in prison.
“I cannot proceed in good conscience with the execution of Mr. Burton under such disparate circumstances. I believe it would be unjust for one participant in this crime to be executed while the participant who pulled the trigger was not.
“To be clear, Mr. Burton will not be eligible for parole and will rightfully spend the remainder of his life behind bars for his role in the robbery that led to the murder of Doug Battle. He will now receive the same punishment as the triggerman.
“The murder of Doug Battle was a senseless and tragic crime, and this decision does not diminish the profound loss felt by the Battle family. I pray that they may find peace and closure.”
Ivey’s commutation order prompted this reaction from Laura Porter, Executive Director, U.S. Campaign to End the Death Penalty
"We are grateful that Governor Ivey recognized that Charles "Sonny" Burton should not be executed. The death penalty process is deeply flawed when someone who was not present for the killing faces execution, while the person who committed the murder does not. It is uplifting to see that more and more governors across the ideological spectrum are recognizing problems with death penalty cases,” she said.
Demetrius Minor, Executive Director, Conservatives Concerned added…
“We want to thank Governor Ivey for granting clemency for Charles "Sonny" Burton. This brings tremendous relief to his family and so many across the country. Conservatives know that government power can be abused and should not be used to execute someone who was not in the building when the murder was committed. Governor Ivey acted on these conservative principles,” he said.
