Missouri Court Overturns Death Sentence for 2002 Murder

The Supreme Court of Missouri has overturned the death sentence for a southeast Missouri man because his attorney did not question the character of a murder victim who had child pornography on his computer. The court unanimously acknowledged in a ruling on Tuesday that character evidence for murder victims is typically barred. Relatives of the victim, Ralph Lape Jr., testified on his generous nature and good character during sentencing, but no counter-evidence was permitted.

The Supreme Court says jurors may then have been less inclined to sentence Gill to death for the July 2002 kidnapping, robbery and shooting.

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