Sentenced to death for two murders, an American is due to be executed on Tuesday April 9 in Missouri, but a petition has been launched for him to be spared. It was signed by the majority of prison officers at his prison.
A visibly appreciated inmate. In the United States, in Missouri, a petition was launched to ask the governor that one of the prisoners not be executed as planned for Tuesday, April 9. The signatories, including many prison guards where the person condemned to death is detained, believe that the latter has reintegrated and speak of an unjust sentence.
Brian Dorsey was sentenced to death for the murders of his cousin and her husband, Sarah and Benjamin Bonnie, in 2006.
The petition is supported by more than 70% of prison officers at the prison where the inmate is located. Five jurors who participated in the criminal phase of the trial at the time also signed the text, as well as a former Missouri Supreme Court justice and at least three local Republican elected officials.
An exemplary inmate, according to the petition
To defend their position, the signatories first highlight the circumstances of Brian Dorsey’s death sentence. They maintain in particular that the latter was suffering from a “psychosis caused by drug consumption” and a “black hole linked to alcohol consumption” at the time of the murders.
She emphasizes that the inmate, suffering from chronic depression, was sometimes prey to hallucinations. These elements should, according to them, have spared him a conviction for first degree murder.
The text also highlights Brian Dorsey’s regrets and the fact that he fully accepts, at the same time, responsibility for the murders.
The signatories also believe that the American was not able to benefit from the best possible defense due to a “financial conflict of interest”, linked to the way in which the lawyers were remunerated at the time of the trial.
Finally, the petition emphasizes that the inmate has had a clean record since he began his stay behind bars. The murderer has also been a barber with the prison staff for 11 years, notes the text, a sensitive position since it allows him to hold a sharp object, a sign of the trust placed in the inmate.
The condemned man struck by “remorse”
With time running out, Brian Dormey’s defense scrambles to try to avoid the death penalty for their client.
“His immense shame and remorse have shaped him and apparently influenced the way he has lived every day of his life since (the murders)”, pleads one of his lawyers, Me Megan Crane, to CNN.
Concerning the inmate’s relatives, some of them, who also lost two members of their family with the two murders, ask that Brian Dorsey be spared, which the petition does not fail to emphasize.
Sarah Bonnie’s family angry
However, they are not all in this situation, according to CNN, which received a press release signed by several relatives of Sarah Bonnie.
Brian Dorsey “was a close family member who was given refuge to get him out of a bad situation and who turned this outstretched hand into the ultimate betrayal of a loved one,” they denounce.
The authors recall that the couple’s daughter, who was 4 years old when her father and mother were killed, grew up without her parents by her side, because of Brian Dorsey’s actions. “Everything was taken away from him by a family member who claimed to love him,” they accuse.
For those close to Sarah Bonnie, her cousin’s sentencing, scheduled for Tuesday, would be “the light at the end of the tunnel.”
The request examined by the governor
On December 23, 2006, Brian Dorsey called his cousin for help, while two drug dealers were at his home demanding money. Sarah Bonnie and her husband arrive on site and the two men leave the scene.
The future inmate then spends the evening with the couple and notably consumes alcohol. Later, he shoots them dead with a gun. Brian Dorsey leaves the apartment after stealing several items, as well as Sarah Bonnie’s car. He eventually turned himself in to the police three days later and pleaded guilty at his trial.
The governor of Missouri is “considering Mr. Dorsey’s appeal for clemency,” according to his spokesperson. A decision is expected in the coming hours.