He was sentenced to death despite not pulling the trigger. An unlikely coalition saved his life

In an act transcending politics, tens of thousands successfully banded together to make the case against executing Charles ‘Sonny’ Burton in Alabama With all of his appeals exhausted, Charles “Sonny” Burton had already chosen the last meal he would have before being put to death by nitrogen gas at Alabama’s Holman correctional facility: barbecue chicken, banana cake with ice cream, and sweet tea – all things he hadn’t been able to enjoy in years with his diabetes. The writing seemed to be on ...

By Emmanuel Felton