Alabama’s governor commuted the death sentence of a 75-year-old inmate who was set to be executed this week, even though he was not in the building when the victim of the murder for which he was sentenced was killed.
Kay Ivey, the state’s Republican governor, this week reduced Charles “Sonny” Burton’s sentence to life in prison without the possibility of parole. The move marks the second time the governor has granted clemency to a death row inmate since taking office in 2017.
Burton was sentenced to death for the 1991 shooting death of a customer, Doug Battle, during a store robbery. However, another man, Derrick DeBruce, shot Battle after Burton left the store.
DeBruce’s death sentence was reduced on appeal to life in prison without the possibility of parole.
Ivey said in a statement that he could not fairly administer the death penalty to Burton when the man who actually killed Battle was allowed to live.
“I firmly believe that the death penalty is a just punishment for society’s most egregious criminals, as demonstrated by the 25 executions I have presided over as governor. However, to ensure the continued viability of the death penalty, I also believe that the most consequential action of a government must be administered in a fair and proportionate manner,” she said.
Burton was to be executed with nitrogen gas on Thursday night. In recent months, Burton’s case has gained national attention, with many criminal justice advocates and members expressing opposition to his execution. Last week, protesters gathered outside the governor’s mansion in an effort to urge Ivey to save Burton’s life.
The victim’s daughter, Tori Battle, even wrote an op-ed in the Montgomery Adviser asking Ivey to commute Burton’s sentence.
In his article, Battle wrote that “my love for my father does not require another death, especially one that defies reason. Mercy does not dishonor him. It honors the values he taught me.”
Alabama has carried out 83 executions since the U.S. Supreme Court reinstated the death penalty in 1976, according to the Death Penalty Information Center.
