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| Man Convicted of 'Boys Don't Cry' Murder Asks That Sentence Be Commuted |
| By Associated Press |
| Published: 01/02/2003 |
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One of two men convicted of murdering ''Boys Don't Cry'' victim Teena Brandon asked the state Supreme Court on Wednesday to commute his death sentence, arguing that a jury, not a judge, should have sentenced him. John Lotter's attorney noted a June ruling in which the U.S. Supreme Court said the Constitution guarantees a trial by a jury, and that that right extends to sentencing. Nebraska lawmakers recently changed state law to allow juries rather than judges to determine if aggravating factors exist to merit a sentence of death, rather than life in prison, in cases where the death penalty is an option. Lotter, 31, also is asking the high court to declare the state's use of the electric chair cruel and unusual punishment. Nebraska is the only state with the electric chair as its sole means of execution. Lawmakers have been unable to pass a bill changing the method of execution to lethal injection. Lotter and Marvin T. Nissen were convicted of the 1993 murder of 21-year-old Brandon, a woman who dressed as a man and dated a female friend of the two men. Prosecutors said Brandon was killed because she accused Lotter and Nissen of raping her after learning her true gender. The men also killed Lisa Lambert, 24, and Philip DeVine, 22, who had witnessed Brandon's death in a rural Humboldt farmhouse. The killings outraged gay activists and were the subject of the movie ''Boys Don't Cry.'' Nissen, in a deal with prosecutors, testified against Lotter and was sentenced to life in prison. Lotter received three death sentences. |
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