In a stunning move, Gov. Kay Ivey on Tuesday commuted the death sentence of Charles "Sonny" Burton, who was scheduled to be executed Thursday despite never having killed anyone.

Burton was one of six men involved in the 1991 robbery of an AutoZone store in Talladega. He had left the building before another man, Derrick DeBruce, shot and killed customer Doug Battle. DeBruce was later resentenced to life without parole and died in prison. Ivey cited that disparity in her decision.

Laura Porter, executive director of the U.S. Campaign to End the Death Penalty, said the commutation is groundbreaking "because Gov. Ivey has not commuted many sentences at all. In fact, only one out of over 25 that have come before her, and this is just astounding and exciting that she heard the arguments presented to her from people."

Ivey said "I cannot proceed in good conscience with the execution of Mr. Burton under such disparate circumstances. I believe it would be unjust for one participant in this crime to be executed while the participant who pulled the trigger was not."

More than 90,000 people had signed petitions urging clemency, including the victim's daughter, Tory Battle, who published an op-ed asking Ivey to spare Burton's life.

It is very rare in Alabama for an execution to get stopped once it's scheduled. Porter reflected on Ivey's clemency record and said the relief for Burton's family is immense. His three children had led a march Monday to the State Capitol to deliver the petitions.

"The one other commutation she did was before an execution had been scheduled," Porter said. "So this is just tremendous news and Mr. Burton will now serve a sentence of life without parole."

Burton's federal defender, Matt Schulz, shared a statement from Burton thanking the governor: "Just saying thank you doesn't seem like much. But it's what I can give her. And I do thank her. Thank you, Governor."

Alabama Attorney General Steve Marshall expressed disappointment, saying Burton "has Douglas Battle's blood on his hands" and should have faced the punishment imposed by a jury.

Source: Public News Service