Cooper announced Darrell “Squeaky” Strickland will serve life without parole, instead of the death penalty, sparking backlash.
MONROE, N.C. โ Union County’s top attorney is pushing back against outgoing Gov. Roy Cooper’s decision to commute the death sentence of a man convicted of murder.ย
On Dec. 31, Cooper announced Darrell “Squeaky” Strickland will serve life without parole, instead of the death penalty.ย
The decision sparked public criticism from Union County District Attorney Trey Robison. He released a statement condemning the move on Friday.ย
“While the governor’s authority to commute sentences is not in question, his handling of the case is troubling,” Robison said. “In commuting Strickland’s sentence, Governor Cooper showed no regard for the criminal justice process that led to Strickland’s rightful placement on death row.”ย
Strickland was convicted and sentenced to death for the New Year’s Day 1995 murder of Henry Brown in Marshville. Strickland shot and killed the victim after an argument.ย
He was previously convicted of manslaughter after a deadly shooting in 1993.ย
Robison said Cooper’s decision to take him off death row “dismissed the unanimous decision of a jury,” the attorney said, adding Brown’s family did not want the sentence changed by Cooper.
The governor’s office did not inform Brown’s family about the decision, Robison claims. He said this violates the state’s Crime Victims’ Rights Act.ย
Cooper said his office carefully reviewed and researched each commutation.ย
Robison said he had tried several times to dissuade Cooper from commuting Strickland’s sentence ahead of the announcement.
In the last night of his leadership as governor, Cooper commuted the sentences of 15 people.ย
The ACLU of North Carolina praised the commutations.ย
โWith this action, Governor Cooper has commuted more death sentences than any governor in North Carolinaโs history and joins the ranks of a group of courageous leaders who used their executive authority to address the failed death penalty,” ACLU Director Chantal Stevens said in a statement.ย
Stevens said the death penalty in North Carolina is “racially biased, unjust and immoral.”
No executions have been carried out in North Carolina since 2006 due to ongoing litigation.ย
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