Alabama Set to Execute Man Who Never Actually Killed Anyone

The state of Alabama has set the execution date for a man who says he did not commit the crime for which he was convicted. A 75-year-old man has spent more than 30 years on death row and is set to be executed on March 12 by the state of Alabama. However, the crime for which he will be executed was not committed by him, according to his attorneys.

Charles “Sonny” Burton, 75, who is set to be executed on March 12, spoke to NBC News in a telephonic interview from William C. Holman Correctional Facility. The facility is where he has spent more than 30 years on death row. In the interview, Burton said, “I shouldn’t die for something I haven’t done.”

Burton was given the death sentence because of a legal doctrine known as felony murder. The doctrine allows prosecutors to treat anyone involved in certain felonies, such as robbery or burglary, equally responsible for a killing that took place during the crime, even if they did not commit the killing themselves.

“Felony murder allows everyone involved in the underlying offense to be treated by the legal system as if they committed an intentional murder,” said Nazgol Ghandnoosh, director of research at The Sentencing Project, an advocacy group.

In 1991, Burton and five other men were involved in a robbery of an AutoZone store in Talladega, Alabama which ended with a customer dead. The victim was identified as Doug Battle, 34.

Burton admitted entering the store, armed with a gun. He said he stole cash from a safe in the back room and then fled outside to wait by the getaway car. While Burton waited outside the store, one of his accomplices, Derrick DeBruce, fatally shot Battle in the back. The state has acknowledged that Burton was not responsible for the killing as a response to the appeal filed by Burton asking for a stay of execution from the U.S. Supreme Court.

“DeBruce hit Battle, knocking him to the floor, then fatally shot him in the back. Burton had already left the store when the shooting occurred,” said Alabama Attorney General Steve Marsall, according to NBC news.

Burton told NBC News, “I didn’t know a murder was going to happen. I would have stopped it.” Burton was convicted of murder and sentenced to death. Prosecutors argued that Burton had been the “ringleader” of the robbery, which Burton has denied.

DeBruce, meanwhile, received a different sentence. Although, he was initially sentenced to death, his sentence was later reduced to life imprisonment after a court ruled that his attorney had provided inefficient representation during the penalty phase of his trial.