The Alabama chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations, the nation’s largest Muslim civil rights and advocacy organization, on Wednesday joined calls for Governor Kay Ivey to grant clemency to Charles Burton, a 75-year-old inmate, youth mentor and prison faith leader facing execution on March 12 for a murder he did not personally commit.
CAIR-AL also reiterated its calls for Alabama to cease using nitrogen gas for state executions, which has repeatedly resulted in botched executions.
Last month, the Alabama Supreme Court authorized Burton’s execution for his role in a 1991 robbery during which another man shot and killed a store clerk. Burton is scheduled for execution despite not being the one who killed the victim. The actual shooter was sentenced to life without the possibility of parole. The victim’s daughter and former jurors have asked for clemency. Burton is in poor health and uses a wheelchair.
“While in state custody, Burton changed his life, converting to Islam, devoting his time to mentoring younger incarcerees, and advocating for religious equality for all incarcerees. Granting Burton clemency would pose no threat to public safety,” CAIR-AL stated.
In a statement, CAIR-AL Staff Attorney Britton O’Shields said:
“We join other civil rights groups, the daughter of the victim, and the jurors who oversaw Mr. Charles Burton’s case in calling on the State of Alabama to grant him clemency.
“Although Mr. Burton was involved in an armed robbery in 1991, he did not personally harm anyone and he has paid dearly for his crime spending the last 35 years of his life behind bars. Mr. Burton poses no threat to public safety and serves as a mentor to others at his facility.
“Whereas Mr. Burton’s transformation and commitment to change serve as an example of how people can change their lives for the better, Mr. Burton’s potential execution reminds us of the pervasive and systemic failures that prevent true restorative justice. Mr. Burton’s sentence should, at the least, be commuted to a life sentence.”
Last year, CAIR-AL called on the State of Alabama to drop the use of nitrogen gas as an execution method after inmate Anthony Boyd was reportedly conscious and visibly suffering for as long as 15 minutes.
CAIR’s mission is to protect civil rights, enhance understanding of Islam, promote justice and empower American Muslims.
