Marion Albert Pruett

Marion Albert Pruett (4 October 1949 ^[1] in Gastonia, North Carolina ^[2] - 12 April 1999 in Cummins Unit, Arkansas) was an American spree killer.

Witness Protection

In 1979, Pruett was given $800, a new name (Charles "Sonny" Pearson), and placed in the federal witness protection program after testifying about a federal prison slaying in Atlanta, Georgia. He then began his crime spree under his alias. Pruett would later claim that he killed the cellmate.^[3]

Pruett killed Peggy Lowe after he kidnapped her as he robbed the Jackson, Mississippi savings and loan where she worked; Bobbie Jean Robertson, a convenience store clerk in Fort Smith, Arkansas; and two convenience store clerks in Colorado. He received a life sentence for Lowe's murder, two more life sentences for the murders in Colorado, and the death penalty for Robertson's murder.

On trial in New Mexico for the 2 March 1981 murder of his common-law wife, Pamela Sue Barker (aka Michelle Lynn Pearson), Pruett admitted that he had robbed and killed in order to support a $4,000 a week cocaine habit, but denied that he killed Barker, who was beaten to death, then set on fire. He was convicted, and given a third life sentence.^[4] From death row, he asked a Mississippi newspaper to pay him $20,000 to disclose the location of Barker's engagement ring, and offered to reveal the location of a Florida victim's body in exchange for a paid appearance on Geraldo.

Execution

Pruett was executed by lethal injection at 8:04PM and pronounced dead at 8:09PM. Pruett was the 19th person executed by Arkansas since Furman v. Georgia.

See also

• Capital punishment in the United States
• Capital punishment in Arkansas

External links

• A&E American Justice episode "Deal With the Devil"

References

1. ^ "SSDI search results for 'Marion Pruett'" ssdi.rootsweb.ancestry.com 19 November 2010
2. ^ "Execution set for `Mad Dog' Pruett" Amarillo Globe-News 19 November 2010
3. ^ April 99 Executions
4. ^ New Mexico killer set to die in Arkansas by The Albuquerque Tribune

Persondata
Name	Pruett, Marion Albert
Alternative names
Short description
Date of birth	4 October 1949
Place of birth
Date of death	12 April 1999
Place of death