Key witness in 1979 murder case gets prison sentence reduced

A federal judge has approved reducing the sentence of a man who helped prosecutors bring charges in a 1979 Cape Girardeau murder case.

Ross Alan Milburn, who was sentenced to life without parole and has spent the last 27 years in federal prison on drug conspiracy charges, will be returned to prison and then should be eligible for supervised release immediately, U.S. District Judge Stephen N. Limbaugh Jr. said.

He granted federal prosecutors' motion to reduce Milburn's sentence Thursday in federal court in Cape Girardeau.

Milburn had agreed to testify in the murder trial of Max Ellison Jr. Ellison was the prime suspect in the murder of Deborah Martin, who was Milburn's girlfriend at the time of her death. Ellison died in August awaiting trial for her murder.

"When a person cooperates in significant cases, they are rewarded for that," said James E. Crowe Jr., federal prosecutor. "We believe this is a part of the justice process we should all follow."

Before the decision, Cape Girardeau Prosecuting Attorney Morley Swingle spoke in support of reducing Milburn's sentence. Swingle said he could not have filed the charges against Ellison without Milburn's testimony.

"He was cooperative with me and said he was willing to take the risk and testify in court," Swingle said.

In addition, Milburn's statements helped link Ellison to thousands of dollars missing from a safe only he and Martin had access to. Milburn told prosecutors that nearly $93,000 was kept in the safe, and evidence connected Ellison to the purchase of $80,000 worth of deposit certificates a short time after Martin's murder.

"We absolutely had to have Ross Alan Milburn because he was the only one who could say Debbie had this money," Swingle said.

The decision to reduce Milburn's sentence, Limbaugh said, was based solely on his cooperation. He added, however, that he wants Milburn to spend significant time on parole, about 18 years.

"The sheer quantity of drugs -- marijuana and cocaine -- you were involved with ... it was the biggest enterprise of its kind that I've ever seen," Limbaugh said. "I want to make sure there's no trouble again."

Before Limbaugh's decision, Milburn expressed his satisfaction in assisting with the case and accepted responsibility for the crimes he committed. He said he was sorry how he hurt himself and his family.

"I quit using drugs over 25 years ago. I will continue to live a disciplined lifestyle now for the rest of my life," Milburn said.

ehevern@semissourian.com

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