Governor spares 2nd killer's life
Death penalty: Henry grants parole board's request
Jurors had requested more guidance during trial.
Governor spares 2nd killer's life

By Michael McNutt and Julie Bisbee

Published: July 25, 2008

For the second time in his five years in office, Gov. Brad Henry granted clemency for a man on death row.

Henry approved clemency for Kevin Young, who was sentenced to death on a first-degree murder conviction in connection with a May 1996 robbery at a northeastern Oklahoma City steak house. Young, 43, will now serve life in prison without the possibility of parole for the death of Joseph Sutton, 56.

Henry last granted clemency in 2004 for Osbaldo Torres, a Mexican national on death row.

Young had been scheduled to die by lethal injection July 22. Last week the governor granted a 30-day stay of execution, setting an execution date of Aug. 21. Henry issued the stay so he could hear arguments in Young's case. The Pardon and Parole Board recommended clemency earlier this month.

"This was a very difficult decision and one that I did not take lightly,” Henry said. "I am always reluctant to intervene in a capital case, and I am very respectful of a jury's verdict, the prosecutors who tried the case and the victim's family who suffered because of the crime.

"However, after reviewing all of the evidence and hearing from both prosecutors and defense attorneys, I decided the Pardon and Parole Board made a proper recommendation to provide clemency and commute the death sentence,” Henry said.

Emily Lang, a spokeswoman for Attorney General Drew Edmondson, said, "The governor has constitutional authority to grant clemency and we respect his decision to do so.”

In testimony presented at the board's clemency hearing, Young's attorneys argued the shooting was not premeditated and did not merit a capital sentence. They said their client turned down a plea agreement in his original trial that would have given him a life sentence.

One of his attorneys, Mark Barrett, said this was the right case for clemency.

"One of the unique things about this case is that the jury as whole didn't want the death penalty,” said Barrett, who had sworn statements from some members of the jury. "I think if this would have gone to the death penalty it would have been a mistake. Not that jury didn't take its job seriously, but it seems a number of them were confused if they could issue a life sentence without parole. I'm afraid there would have been jurors who would have felt guilty if this case had gone to death.”

A juror in the case who contacted The Oklahoman said jurors asked for clarification in sentencing Young, but got none.

"We wanted to make sure this person wasn't on the street ever. Period,” said the juror who did not want his named used.

Police said Young and another man went to the steakhouse with the intention of robbing the restaurant. During the robbery, a man at the restaurant grabbed an attacker's gun and Sutton reached for his own gun and started shooting.

During his clemency hearing, Young admitted to his role in the robbery, but said he never meant to hurt anyone. He said he emptied his .38-caliber revolver only after being shot by Sutton during the melee.

"When I got inside, things didn't go as planned,” Young said. "To tell you the truth, I don't know if it was my bullet that killed Mr. Sutton.”

Young's case has been upheld on appeals, and the U.S. Supreme Court has refused a request to hear the case.

Witnesses were only able to identify Young by the crumpled-up shirt that lay on his hospital bed while he was receiving treatment. During the preliminary hearing, neither witness could identify Young in the courtroom. One witness later identified Young at trial. However, Young's DNA matched samples taken from the scene, according to testimony.