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In Montgomery, Alabama, Gov. Kay Ivey made a pivotal decision on Tuesday, commuting the death sentence of a 75-year-old inmate who had been slated for execution later this week. Notably, the inmate was not present at the scene when the actual murder occurred.
Gov. Ivey altered Charles “Sonny” Burton’s fate by changing his sentence to life imprisonment without parole. This marks only the second instance of clemency granted by the Republican governor to a death row inmate since she assumed office in 2017.
Burton faced the death penalty for his role in the 1991 robbery that resulted in the shooting death of Doug Battle, a customer. However, Burton had exited the premises before Derrick DeBruce, another accomplice, committed the murder. DeBruce’s own death sentence was subsequently reduced to life imprisonment on appeal.
Having overseen 25 executions during her tenure, Ivey asserted her staunch support for the death penalty as a necessary measure for the gravest crimes. Nevertheless, she emphasized the importance of ensuring that it is applied equitably and fairly.
“I cannot, in good conscience, carry out Mr. Burton’s execution given the disproportionate circumstances. It would be unjust for one involved in the crime to face execution while the individual who actually fired the fatal shot does not,” Ivey stated emphatically.
Burton was scheduled to be executed Thursday night by nitrogen gas.
Battle was shot in the back during an Aug. 16, 1991, robbery of an AutoZone auto parts store in Talladega. Court testimony indicated that DeBruce shot Battle after Burton and other robbers had left the store. Battle had entered the store as the robbery was winding down and exchanged words with DeBruce.
Burton’s supporters and family members had urged Ivey to consider clemency for the inmate, who is sometimes confined to a wheelchair. Multiple jurors from Burton’s 1992 trial were among those urging his life be spared. Battle’s daughter sent a letter to Ivey urging clemency, asking “how does it legally make sense” to execute Burton.
Members of Burton’s legal team cheered when they received the news Tuesday.
“I’m just so happy, so happy. It’s just tears of joy,” Burton’s daughter, Lois Harris, said through sobs during a telephone interview. Harris said she wants to thank Ivey for granting clemency.
Alice Marie Johnson, whom President Donald Trump had tapped last year as his “pardon czar” after commuting her sentence for federal drug and money laundering charges, praised Ivey. She said the governor “showed what courageous and common sense leadership looks like.”
“By commuting the death sentence of Charles “Sonny” Burton, she ensured that justice — not technicalities — guides the most serious decision a state can make,” Johnson wrote on social media.
But Attorney General Steve Marshall slammed the move, saying “There has never been any doubt that Sonny Burton has Douglas Battle’s blood on his hands.”
Burton organized the armed robbery and “held a gun to the store manager’s head” before dividing up the proceeds, Marshall said in a statement.
Burton told The Associated Press last month that no one was supposed to be injured in the robbery and that he didn’t know until later that DeBruce had shot anyone.
“I didn’t know anything about nobody getting hurt until we were on the way back. No, nobody supposed to get hurt,” Burton said in a telephone interview from Alabama’s Holman Correctional Facility
Burton said he wants to apologize to Battle’s family. “I’m so sorry. If I had the power to bring him back, I would. I’m so sorry,” Burton said.