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 Andrew A. Lyons, circa 1996. [Click to enlarge] |
Andrew A. Lyons, 52, was sentenced to two death sentences in 1996 for the shooting deaths of Evelyn Sparks and Bridgette Harris, an ex-girlfriend. He also received a seven-year sentence for the shooting death of his 11-month old son Dontay Harris.
One of the death sentences, for Evelyn Sparks, was reversed and Lyons resentenced to life in prison without parole when the Missouri Supreme Court ruled that it was invalid because it was imposed by a judge. The jury in the case could not decide on a sentence and a U.S. Supreme Court case decided in 2002 ruled that a death sentence can only be imposed on recommendation of a jury.
In the latest appeal, attorney Frederick A. Duchadt Jr. argued Thursday that Lyons scored low on intelligence tests and is mentally disabled. Lyons's death sentence for the death of Bridgette Harris violates a 2007 U.S. Supreme Court ruling that the mentally disabled cannot be executed, he said.
Circuit Judge Michael Burton of St. Louis, appointed by the Missouri Supreme Court to evaluate Lyons' case, concluded that he is mentally disabled, with an IQ of in the 60s and several functional impairments.
The state contests the determination and argues that Lyons is not mentally disabled under state law.
Lyons was convicted of going to Sparks's home at 1117 S. Ranney Ave. on the morning of Sept. 20, 1992, one week after he and Bridgette Harris broke up a three-year relationship, and shot Sparks in her kitchen. He then shot Bridget Harris and Dontay Harris in the basement of the home. Two other boys in the home hid under a bed and were unharmed.
Lyons had talked about killing Harris several times in the week before the shooting. After the killings, he visited the homes of friends and confessed the crime. Police arrested him in the afternoon.
Lyons underwent several mental evaluations following a suicide attempt and was housed at Fulton State Hospital in Fulton, Mo., until he was declared fit to stand trial on Feb. 23, 1995.
Lyons is one of three men on death row for murders that took place in Cape Girardeau County. Russell Bucklew has been awaiting the death penalty since May 15, 1997, for the March 21, 1996, murder of Michael Sanders. Mark A. Gill has been on death row since April 20, 2004, for the murder of Ralph L. Lape Jr., who was taken from his rural Cape Girardeau County home in July 2002 and found shot to death and buried in a cornfield near Portageville, Mo.
Pertinent address:
1117 S. Ranney Ave., Cape Girardeau, MO
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I was Bridget's next door neighbor while she was pregnant with Dontay. Andrew was not good to her which is why she ended the relationship. She was scared of him. He did tell her he was going to kill her. The day he showed up at her mothers, he told her two older kids to run if they didn't want to die. He knew exactly what he was doing and deserves the death penalty. He left two children without their mother, baby brother and grandmother. I do not know what ever happened to them. I pray they found a loving home to grow up in.
I agree he knew what he was doing.What is wrong with our system.
I went to high school with Bridgett. She was a good mother and was trying to get her kids away from that abusive relationship. He was fully aware of his crime!!
He was sane enough and intelligent enough to plan it and decide how many bullets he needed, so he is sane enough to to be executed!
A total waste of time!
In my opinion, anyone who commits murder is mentally disabled, no matter what their IQ is.
Well said Sam.
In my opinion, anyone who commits murder is mentally disabled, no matter what their IQ is.
-- Posted by Sam DeReign on Fri, Nov 6, 2009, at 9:49 AM
+1
This is just a sad situation all around. Even IF this man did not understand the implications of his acts, that is simply all the more reason not to ever let him back into society.
Personally, if it was me, I'd rather let them inject me and get it over with. This man's mental capacity and sanity was questionable before and now he's been rotting on death row for 13 years. That means he is probably more insane and dangerous than ever. I can't see how there is any hope for him. His lawyers should cancel his remaining appeals so there can be some final closure to this thing.
Poor fellow.
Another victim of the free market system.
Is it possible he misrepresented his intelligence on the tests? Mentally disabled or not, he knows murder is wrong.
Quit messing around and execute this guy! The state is wasting the taxpayers money!!!!!
What is wrong with this sysyem. Everyone do a crime need to pay for it. So I guest he get to live just because he act like he is mentally disabled
there is nothing wrong with him he been siiting there over the years eating and sleeping while my the family just sitting and waiting and everytime it comes up they talks about his mental state he knew what he wanted to do and he did it and while he is sitting on death row his family still get to talk to him and see him but the harris family can't go see they family Briget kids can't go see her and Dontay think about that
Our Family want this to end and let us move on with our lives and haven't we suffered enough
In my opinion Andrew Lyons needs to suffer. I say kill him, and let God deal with him. He KNEW what he was doing. He will burn in hell for what he did to Evelyn, Bridgette, and Dontay. Evelyn was a wonderful person, and a great neighbor. She lived next door to me, and my mother. She was a very outgoing person, and everybody loved her. When they do kill him I hope that he feels every single bit of pain a hundred times over that he inflicted on Evelyn's family, and friends.
If you wanna keep him alive then YOU pay for his stay in jail for life,he shot a baby in the head with a shotgun...c'mon why keep him on earth,send him on...
What does this have to do with our free market system? For Real! He filled his heart with hate and proceded to kill these people because he was angry. I know plenty of disabled people and they are well aware that murder is wrong!
WHAT? How does this affect Lance Shockley's death sentence?
One of the death sentences... was reversed and Lyons resentenced to life in prison without parole when the Missouri Supreme Court ruled that it was invalid because it was imposed by a judge.
The jury in the case could not decide on a sentence and a U.S. Supreme Court case decided in 2002 ruled that a death sentence can only be imposed on recommendation of a jury.
OlderEagle I think a judge can sentence you to the death penalty if you wave the right to a jury trial. If a jury decides your sentence and recommends the death penalty a judge can sentence you to either death or life without parole. If they say life without parole then that is all the judge can sentence you to. A ex brother in law of mine got life without parole for 50 years and has been up for parole several times already. He has only served 28 years now. A ex coworker was supposed to serve 17 years before parole but the parole board has said they would let him out earlier because they decided that he was not a danger. He killed a 18 year old man and got a plea bargain down to manslaughter from second degree murder. This is after he told the man he was going to kill him then went and got a gun, loaded it and came back into the room and pulled the trigger. Makes you just shake your head and wonder what some are thinking. This guy deserves to die period!
First off all the deaths that day were a tradgedy and shouldnt have happen. And Andrew will live the rest of his life knowing that which I am sure is worse than death. However Andrew is a person as well and a good person who did a bad horrible unfortunately unforgiveable thing that day. God will judge him not YOU. You make your comments Not even knowing him or the events of what happen that day only what the outcome was. Your IQ is low to just comment not knowing the whole story or knowing Andrew. A death for a death doesnt solve anything. Just like the Harris family didnt deserve the hurt of the loss of there loved ones which included our family too Dontay was his son which makes him our family we lost as well We dont deserve the pain or loss either.