Death Row Inmate Appeals Sentence To U.S. Supreme Court

Thursday, May 10th 2007, 7:52 am

By: News On 6

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) -- The U.S. Justice Department is calling on the Supreme Court to reject the appeal of a convicted killer from Oklahoma. Patrick Murphy was convicted and sentenced to death for mutilating and killing George Jacobs in McIntosh County in 1999.

Murphy's lawyers say he should've been tried in federal court because both men were members of the Creek Nation. They also argue the crime took place on Creek land because a fraction of the mineral rights was under Indian control.

Government attorneys say the state has jurisdiction to prosecute for crimes committed by Indians on non-Indian land.

A district court in Oklahoma and the state Court of Criminal Appeals have already rejected the appeal.