Inmate: JERRY L MCCRACKEN
ODOC#: 185068
Race: White
Sex: Male
Height: 6' 1"
Weight: 170 pounds
Hair: Red
Eyes: Hazel
Location: Oklahoma State Penitentiary, Mcalester
Priors: 1989 - Assault with a Dangerous Weapon

Oklahoma Attorney General News Release

News Release - W.A. Drew Edmondson, Attorney General - 10/17/02

McCracken Execution Set For Dec. 10

The Oklahoma Court of Criminal Appeals today set Dec. 10 as the execution date for death row inmate Jerry Lynn McCracken. Attorney General Drew Edmondson requested the execution date Oct. 7 after the United States Supreme Court denied the inmate's final appeal.

McCracken, 35, was convicted in Tulsa County District Court of the Oct. 14, 1990, murders of Tyrrell Lee Boyd, Steve Allen Smith, Timothy Edward Sheets and Carol Ann McDaniels. All four victims were shot during a robbery at the Ferndale Lounge in Tulsa.

ProDeathPenalty.Com

A convicted Tulsa County killer who claimed another man pulled the trigger in 1990 now says he did it. "I am guilty," said Jerry Lynn McCracken, who was convicted of killing four people in the New Ferndale Lounge during a robbery. "I have no excuse." McCracken refused to discuss the crime, what he would say to his victims' relatives and a number of other issues, saying he didn't want to interfere with an interview he had already given to a Tulsa television station. "I am ready to die," said McCracken, adding that he accepted Christ on Sept. 2, 1991. McCracken said he is aware that talking about his case might impact his appeal.

McCracken and David Keith Lawrence on Oct. 14, 1990, entered the New Ferndale Lounge, 1216 W. Archer St. The pair began drinking and decided to rob the lounge. McCracken was convicted of the deaths of Steve Allen Smith, 34, Tyrell Lee Boyd, 27, Timothy Edward Sheets, 37, and Carole Ann McDaniels, 41, who were in the lounge. Lawrence was given a life sentence plus 20 years in prison in a plea agreement in which he testified against McCracken. "I am not the one who pulled the trigger," McCracken told a jury in September 1991, blaming the murders on Lawrence. "I am sorry I gave Dave the gun," he said in 1991. "If I had known he would do this, I would have never given him that gun."

At the time of the crime, McCracken, who dropped out of high school to join the Army, said he wasn't aware that he could receive the death penalty. D.D. Nelson Helton, a former manager at the lounge, said McCracken's actions affected a lot of people, in addition to the relatives of his victims. If she could say anything to McCracken, she would tell him that he didn't have to murder to get what he wanted. "I think in certain areas, there are things God just doesn't forgive," Helton said. "I have gotten over the anger of it. I don't know. I try not to think about it because I have nightmares still." Helton was friends with McDaniels, who was tending bar in her place.

McCracken said that had he not been caught and convicted, he might have died sooner and gone to hell, adding that he had attempted suicide. "The only one that can change anyone is God," he said, adding he has been through alcohol treatment and other programs while in jail. "They didn't help me." In July 1990, he was released from prison for his involvement in stabbing and wounding three people in a Lawton bar. He said the stabbing was self-defense. McCracken said he takes medication to control his temper and that he has been told he is bipolar and antisocial. "At times, I would get so angry," he said. "Now, it is controlled with the medication." He spends his time on death row watching television, reading his Bible, going to church services and drawing.

National Coalition to Abolish the Death Penalty

Jerry McCracken (OK) - Dec. 10, 2002 - 6:00 PM CST, 7:00 PM EST

The state of Oklahoma is scheduled to execute Jerry McCracken, a white man, Dec. 10 for four murders in the early hours of Oct. 14, 1990. McCracken and his friend, David Lawrence, allegedly entered the New Ferndale Lounge between 7 pm and 8 pm on the evening of Oct. 13, and consumed alcohol until they were – according to lounge owner Patricia Harrington – “very drunk.” At some point shortly after midnight, they shot all four people remaining in the lounge in a robbery attempt.

After his incarceration, McCracken confessed to playing a role in the crime, but blamed his partner for the shootings. “I am not the one who pulled the trigger,” McCracken said at his trial in September 1991. “I am sorry I gave Dave [Lawrence] the gun. If I had known he would do this, I would have never given him that gun.” In 2001, as the end of his appeals process neared, he confessed to the murders, admitting in an interview, “I am guilty. I have no excuse.”

Although McCracken claims he is ready to die because he found Christ on Sept. 2, 1991, his professed guilt in the murder does not justify the death penalty. His jury passed a question to the judge, which asked, “Does life without parole mean exactly that? He would never under any circumstances, get out of prison?” The judge, affirmed by the appellate courts above him, maintained that the sentence was self-explanatory and that he would not clarify the instructions.

The answer – a life without parole sentence in Oklahoma means that the Pardon and Parole Board is prohibited from making recommendations regarding parole, and that the Governor does not have the power to grant parole – would have very likely secured McCracken a life sentence. Unlike some states, such as Texas, Oklahoma law includes life without parole as an option, and the fact that the jurors did not understand that makes the U.S. Supreme Court’s Simmons decision applicable. In that case, the high court overturned a death sentence because the jurors did not realize life without parole was an option. Although there is substantial legal precedent for a judge to refuse the jury’s request for information about one of its possible sentencing options, its practical application undoubtedly works against defendants.

Since his conviction in 1991, McCracken has also challenged the aggravating evidence used to support the death penalty in his case, as well as the effectiveness of his defense counsel. He put forth no major arguments concerning his antisocial and bipolar behavior, but his history of medication and problems with alcohol abuse give insight to McCracken’s personal struggles along the way. This execution is pointless, and only justifies the acts of violence in the past. Please write the state of Oklahoma to request a commutation of this death sentence.

United Press International

"Oklahoma Man Executed for Killing Four," by John Yates. (UPI December 10, 2002)

MCALESTER, Okla., Dec. 10 (UPI) -- An Oklahoma killer's mother told him she was proud of him moments before he was executed Tuesday for killing four people during a Tulsa robbery. Jerry Lynn McCracken, 35, became the fifth inmate executed by lethal drug injection in Oklahoma this year. He was pronounced dead at 6:06 p.m.

McCracken was convicted of killing four people during a robbery at a Tulsa lounge. He was on pre-parole release at the time of the murders. A co-defendant in the case, David Lawrence, pleaded guilty to his role in the crime and received four concurrent life sentences plus 20 years.

The atmosphere in the death chamber area, where members of his family and spiritual advisers were, had many religious aspects. He apologized to the victim's family, and asked for forgiveness. But there were no victims' family members present to witness the execution, although they are allowed under Oklahoma law. He told his mother, "I'll see you in heaven." She told him "we're proud of you." His last words were lengthy, and included both individual greetings to his witnesses, and as the execution grew closer and began, prayer and singing.

McCracken led his family in singing a hymn as the lethal drugs were coursing through his body, and he appeared to lose consciousness while singing. The time of death was declared as 6:06 p.m. after a physician checked McCracken for vital signs. After the time of death was declared, his mother said, "Thank you, Jesus, for taking my boy home." His mother sang softly after the execution.

Under Oklahoma law, there has to be at least one aggravating circumstance proven for the death penalty to be imposed. In McCracken's case, there were six separate aggravating circumstances found.

Oklahoma has executed 53 men and women by lethal drug injection since the death penalty was reinstated. Since statehood, 136 killers have been executed in Oklahoma.

The Daily Oklahoman

"McCracken Executed for Four Tulsa Murders, by Tim Talley. (AP December 10, 2002)

McALESTER - An Army veteran who killed four people during a 1990 robbery at a Tulsa nightclub was executed Tuesday. Jerry Lynn McCracken, 35, was pronounced dead at 6:06 p.m. after receiving an injection of drugs at the Oklahoma State Penitentiary. He was the fifth inmate executed in Oklahoma this year.

McCracken was convicted of four counts of first-degree murder and sentenced to die for the shooting deaths of Steve Allen Smith, 34, Tyrrell Lee Boyd, 27, Timothy Edward Sheets, 39, and Carol Ann McDaniels, 41, at the New Ferndale Lounge on Oct. 14, 1990. Each of the victims was shot with a .22-caliber pistol during a robbery at the bar in which $350 was taken. A co-defendant, David Keith Lawrence, pleaded guilty and received a sentence of life in prison plus 20 years in exchange for his testimony against McCracken. No members of the victims' families witnessed the execution.

At his trial, McCracken blamed Lawrence for the murders. "I am not the one who pulled the trigger," McCracken told a jury in September 1991. But McCracken changed his story and admitted he was the triggerman in an interview published by the Tulsa World last year. "I am guilty. I have no excuse," said McCracken. "I am ready to die." McCracken was on pre-parole release from prison for a series of knife assaults when the murders occurred.

The state Pardon and Parole Board rejected clemency for McCracken at a hearing last month where he apologized to Lawrence for talking him into helping with the robbery. McCracken's execution went forward after the U.S. Supreme Court denied a last-minute bid to stay the execution.

Issues raised in McCracken's federal appeals included ineffective counsel, aggravating evidence used to support the death penalty and defective jury instructions in which a judge said McCracken was presumed "not guilty" instead of presumed innocent. The instruction was not objected to at trial, but the state Court of Criminal Appeals granted automatic reversals to defendants who did, according to documents filed by McCracken's attorney, David Autry.

Autry argued that McCracken was a candidate for clemency because he suffered from personality disorders and had a predisposition to alcoholism and substance abuse. Autry said McCracken was "heavily intoxicated" when the murders occurred. While on death row, McCracken devoted himself to his Christian faith and corresponded with a variety of prison ministries. At his clemency hearing, McCracken said he promised God he would not cut his hair, which hangs past his shoulders and mingles with a long beard. McCracken is the 53rd inmate to be executed in the state since executions resumed in 1990. Two other death row inmates are scheduled to die this month: Comanche County killer Jay Wesley Neill is scheduled to die on Thursday and Oklahoma County killer Ernest Melvin Carter Jr. is scheduled to die on Dec. 17. Gov. Frank Keating is considering a recommendation by the Pardon and Parole Board that Carter be granted clemency.

The Death House

Killer of Four Executed in Oklahoma

McALESTER, Okla. - Jerry McCracken admitted to shooting and killing four people during a robbery of a Tulsa bar in October 1990. As he came closer to execution, he did not ask for mercy. He got none.

McCracken was executed by lethal injection Tuesday night at the Oklahoma State Penitentiary. He became the fifth convicted killer put to death in the state this year. During an appearance before the Oklahoma Pardon and Parole Board, McCracken, a 35-year-old Army veteran, admitted his guilt and refused to ask the panel to spare his life, saying to do so would be disrespectful. He was pronounced dead from the lethal chemicals at 6:06 p.m

McCracken and accomplice David Lawrence robbed the New Ferndale Lounge in October 1990. During the robbery, three men and one woman were shot to death, including the bartenders and two customers. About $350 was taken during the robbery.

Lawrence received life in prison. McCracken received a death sentence in 1991. The two had blamed each other for the shootings. However, McCracken later told the pardons panel he was guilty and was prepared to die. Before the murders, McCracken had been on parole for stabbing three people in a bar.

McCracken v. Gibson (U.S. Circuit Court 2001 Habeas)

BRISCOE, Circuit Judge

Petitioner Jerry Lynn McCracken, an Oklahoma state prisoner convicted of four counts of first degree murder and sentenced to death, appeals the district court’s denial of his 28 U.S.C. § 2254 petition for writ of habeas corpus. We exercise jurisdiction pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1291 and affirm.

On the evening of October 13, 1990, after drinking and smoking marijuana with friends at an apartment in Tulsa, McCracken and co-defendant David Lawrence went to the Ferndale Lounge, where they drank heavily for several hours. Between approximately 12:40 and 12:55 a.m., they were overheard saying to each other that they weren’t “afraid to fight nobody,” weren’t afraid “of getting an ass whuppin’,” and weren’t “afraid to shoot somebody.” Tr. at 159. By approximately 12:55 a.m., only the bartender and five patrons, including McCracken and Lawrence, were in the bar.

A witness entered the bar at approximately 1:05 a.m. and found a man lying on the floor, covered in blood. The witness ran out of the bar and across the street to a convenience store, where he told three policemen what he had seen. The police found four victims inside the bar, all of whom appeared to have been shot in the head. Two of the victims were dead. The bartender (Carol McDaniels) and a third patron (Timothy Sheets) were transferred to a local hospital where they both died. An inventory of the bar revealed that $350 had been taken from the cash register, along with two beer pitchers and four beer mugs.

McCracken and Lawrence were arrested and charged with four counts of first degree murder. McCracken was also charged with one count of possession of a firearm after former conviction of a felony. Lawrence pled guilty to the four murder charges and was sentenced to four concurrent life sentences, plus twenty years. As part of his plea agreement, Lawrence agreed to testify at trial against McCracken.

At McCracken’s trial, Lawrence testified it was McCracken’s idea to rob the Ferndale Lounge. Although Lawrence agreed to participate in the robbery, he testified he was unaware that McCracken intended to kill anyone. According to Lawrence, McCracken stood up from the bar, pulled out a gun from his waistband, and announced, “This is a robbery.” Tr. at 281. Lawrence testified that McCracken directed the bartender to give him the cash from the register, and directed Lawrence to pick up the mugs and pitcher from which they had been drinking. McCracken then shot the bartender and the three bar patrons.

McCracken testified in his own defense and disputed Lawrence’s story. McCracken testified that, while at the bar, Lawrence asked if he could look at McCracken’s pistol. McCracken testified he gave the gun to Lawrence. According to McCracken, approximately thirty minutes later, Lawrence started talking about how he would like to rob the bar. McCracken testified that Lawrence stood up, pointed the gun, and directed the bartender to give him the money from the register. McCracken testified that after the bartender gave Lawrence the money, Lawrence shot the three bar patrons and the bartender.

The jury found McCracken guilty on the four murder charges and the felon in possession of a firearm charge. At the conclusion of the second-stage proceedings, the jury found the existence of all six aggravating factors alleged by the prosecution: (1) previous conviction of a felony involving violence; (2) that McCracken knowingly created a great risk of death to more than one person; (3) the murders were committed while McCracken was serving a sentence on a felony conviction; (4) the probability that McCracken was a continuing threat to society; (5) two of the murders (McDaniels and Sheets) were especially heinous, atrocious and cruel; and (6) the murders were committed for the purpose of preventing lawful arrest and prosecution.

The Oklahoma Court of Criminal Appeals (OCCA) affirmed McCracken’s convictions and sentences on direct appeal, McCracken v. State, 887 P.2d 323 (Okla. Crim. App. 1994) (McCracken I), and the United States Supreme Court denied his petition for writ of certiorari. McCracken v. Oklahoma, 516 U.S. 859 (1995). McCracken filed an application for post-conviction relief which was denied by the OCCA. McCracken v. State, 946 P.2d 672 (Okla. Crim. App. 1997) (McCracken II).

On October 20, 1997, McCracken filed a pro se motion in federal district court requesting appointment of counsel to represent him in a federal habeas proceeding. The district court granted the motion and, on December 12, 1997, appointed counsel filed a “preliminary petition for writ of habeas corpus” asserting fourteen grounds for relief. On February 11, 1998, appointed counsel filed an amended petition for writ of habeas corpus which, like the preliminary petition, asserted fourteen grounds for relief. On May 16, 2000, the district court denied McCracken’s request for habeas relief. The district court subsequently granted a certificate of appealability (COA) with respect to four issues: (1) whether the trial court violated McCracken’s constitutional rights by instructing the jury that McCracken was presumed “not guilty”; (2) whether trial counsel’s performance was constitutionally deficient because of his failure to obtain and present evidence concerning mental health issues; (3) whether the trial court erred by failing to direct the jury to determine whether McCracken satisfied the death eligibility standards of Enmund v. Florida and Tison v. Arizona; and (4) whether the trial court violated McCracken’s constitutional rights by failing to explain, in response to a question from the jury, the meaning of life imprisonment without parole. This court has granted a COA with respect to one additional issue: whether the evidence presented at trial was sufficient to support the jury’s finding of the “especially heinous, atrocious or cruel” aggravating factor.

* * * *

The judgment of the district court is AFFIRMED.