WHITE SUPREMACIST PRISON KILLER: TROY KELL [MURDERED INMATE, ON JULY 6, 1994]

On this date, July 6, 1994, a White Supremacist Lifer, Troy Kell murdered his African-American Inmate, Lonnie Blackmon at the Utah Department of Corrections Gunnison facility. I will post information from Wikipedia and several links before giving my comments.

Troy Kell

Troy Michael Kell (born June 13, 1968) is an inmate on death row in Utah. Troy Kell was sentenced to life in prison by the State of Nevada for the 1986 murder of James "Cotton" Kelly. Shortly after his conviction he was transferred to the Utah State Prison as part of a prisoner exchange program. On July 6, 1994, Troy Kell attacked and killed inmate Lonnie Blackmon at the Utah Department of Corrections Gunnison facility, stabbing Blackmon a total of 67 times while his associate, Eric Daniels, held Blackmon down. Kell was sentenced to death by firing squad for his part in the murder. Once in prison, Kell became a white supremacist gang leader. Prior to the attack on Blackmon, Kell had been involved in race-related altercations with several black inmates, including Blackmon. The murder was captured on the prison security closed-circuit TV camera.

Troy Kell

Documentary production

HBO, in cooperation with Blowback Productions filmed a documentary, entitled Gladiator Days: Anatomy of a Prison Murder, released in 2002. The documentary tells the story of Troy Kell and Eric Daniels' murder of Lonnie Blackmon, and shows footage of the initial trial in 1986; statements from Kell, Daniels, guards, the state attorney, Blackmon's brother, and Sandra Shaw (who was serving time elsewhere as the instigator of Kell's first murder, for which Kell was originally incarcerated); and footage of the attack captured by the CCTV within the Utah Prison in Gunnison, Utah.

 

(SOURCE: http://www.imdb.com/media/rm1444912128/tt0359332)

The trial

Due to security concerns, the state won the right to hold Kell's trial in a courtroom within the Utah State Prison facility. Convicted of aggravated murder, the state pushed for and secured a death penalty verdict from the jury. In 2003, he came within a month of execution by firing squad, but eventually chose to file an appeal. As of May 2008, Kell remains on death row, as his appeals process continues.

Troy Kell

Conviction for a previous murder

Kell was originally imprisoned in the state of Nevada for the murder of 21-year old James "Cotton" Kelly. Although tried for killing "Kelly," the victim's real name was James Thiede, a Canadian citizen who was under investigation for drug smuggling from the RCMP(Royal Canadian Mounted Police). Some years later, Thiede's mother, father and uncle were federally indicted both in Las Vegas and Toronto for drug smuggling, all using the same alias, "Kelly." In 1986, Kell, then age 18, was asked by 15 year-old long-time friend, Sandy M. Shaw to beat Cotton Kelly for relentlessly stalking Miss Shaw for sex. Her mother had gone to the police earlier, but there were no stalking laws on the books at that time, which caused Shaw to turn to Kell, her childhood protector from her old neighborhood.

Cotton Kelly drove into the desert with Shaw, Kell, and a third young man (William "Billy" Merritt), where Kell shot Kelly six times in the face, killing him. The murder was dubbed the "Show and Tell Murder" by Las Vegas media, because Shaw and another teen (David Fletcher) allegedly returned to the scene of the crime with their friends, to see the corpse. One of the friends eventually reported the incident to the police which led to the arrests and convictions of Shaw, Kell, and Merritt.

The Las Vegas Sun reported Ms. Shaw's words: “I made a horrible, immature decision to ask a friend to rough this man up so he would leave me alone,” Sandy says. “Cotton Kelly had been hassling me and pestering me to go out with him and to pose for nude pictures. He would call our house at all hours of the day and was so persistent that my mom phoned the police to request that they keep him away from me. But they didn’t have stalking laws in place then like we have today.”

For her part in the crime Sandy Shaw was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole. In 2004, the State Board of Pardons and Parole commuted her sentence making her eligible for parole. She served 21 years of her sentence and was released on parole in December 2007. William Merritt, who testified against Kell, was released from prison after serving only 4 years of an 8-to-12-year, plea-bargained sentence. He later returned for subsequent crimes. and is now serving life in prison without parole. Troy Kell was sentenced to life in prison without parole. He was transferred to Utah because of violent altercations between himself and other inmates and gang affiliations.

Troy Kell

Marriage

On December 9, 2010, Troy Michael Kell married his fiancee (not identified) at the Utah State Prison-Draper in a non-contact visitation room.

INTERNET SOURCE: http://www.prodeathpenalty.com/pending/03/jun03.htm

  

Date of scheduled execution	State	Victim name	Inmate name	Status
June 28, 2003	Utah	Lonnie Blackmon	Troy Kell	stayed
Troy Michael Kell, an inmate at the Central Utah Correctional Facility in Gunnison, Utah, was charged with aggravated murder. Kell stabbed fellow inmate Lonnie Blackmon to death on July 6, 1994. Prior to the attack, Kell, a white supremacist, had been involved in race-related altercations with several African-American inmates, including Blackmon. On the day before the killing, Kell and two of his accomplices, Eric Daniels and Paul Payne, submitted medical request forms to visit the prison's medical facility. In addition, Daniels forged a medical request form in Blackmon's name so that Blackmon would be transported to the medical facility at the same time Kell and his accomplices were being transported. Moments before the attack occurred, Kell and Blackmon were moved from the upper tier of the building at the CUCF where they were housed to the lower tier where they awaited transfer to the prison's medical facility. Both Kell and Blackmon were placed in double locked handcuffs fastened to a belt around the waist. Their feet were not placed in shackles so that they could safely descend the stairs from the top tier of the cell block. By this time, Daniels had also been moved to the lower tier to go to the medical facility. Payne's request to go to the medical facility had been denied because he was in punitive isolation on the top tier of the cell block. Nevertheless, at his insistence, Payne was permitted to shower on the lower tier of the cell block rather than in the showers located on the second tier of the cell block, where his cell was located. While descending to the lower tier, Kell removed his handcuffs with a partial handcuff key that had been altered with a homemade handle made from melted plastic utensils. Kell also produced a shank. Blackmon was standing with his back to Kell talking to other inmates, when Kell began to stab him repeatedly in the neck, eyes, face, back and chest. Kell was free to use his unrestrained hands and arms during the attack, but Blackmon could only kick at his attackers to defend himself because he was still in handcuffs that were attached to his waist. Blackmon's efforts were futile in any event because Payne choked and punched him and Daniels held onto his legs during the attack. For over two and a half minutes, Kell slashed Blackmon with his shank, inflicting sixty-seven stab wounds, only two of which were described by the forensic examiner as being capable of inflicting death in the short term. Despite Blackmon's pleas to stop, Kell continued the assault and, in fact, after walking away, returned twice to inflict more wounds, until Blackmon lay motionless on the floor of the cell block. Blackmon bled to death and Kell was charged with aggravated murder. State v. Daniels, 2002 UT 2. Following two pretrial hearings, the trial court determined to hold Kell's trial in a regular courtroom located inside the CUCF. This decision was based on security risks, including Kell's criminal background, prison disciplinary record, and overall prison history. In addition, several logistical problems regarding security existed in trying Kell in either of the two courtrooms available outside the prison. Because most of the numerous witnesses in the case were either prison guards or high security inmates, the security risks and costs associated with transporting all of them to a courtroom located outside of the county would have been extremely high; thus, the trial court decided to hold the trial in the courtroom located within the confines of the prison. At trial, Kell testified that he killed Blackmon because Blackmon had overtly threatened him. According to Kell, Blackmon wanted to make an example of him to the other inmates to demonstrate Blackmon's power in the prison. Kell stated he believed Blackmon was making a threat when he overheard Blackmon say to another inmate on the day of the killing, "Yeah man . . . it's on. You know it," even though Blackmon made no threatening gestures toward Kell. Kell claimed that due to conditions in the prison and circumstances surrounding Blackmon's threats, he was suffering from "extreme emotional disturbance" at the time of the homicide. One eyewitness testified, however, that during the attack Kell's demeanor was "very business like, as cold as cold gets. It was like he was doing a job."  Kell was captured on the prison security camera in the act of the murder. Kell was already serving a life sentence without the possibility of parole for a murder in Nevada. UPDATE: Kell reinstated his appeals and the execution was stayed.

INTERNET SOURCE: http://www.deseretnews.com/article/print/497945/MURDER-WAS-THE-2ND-IN-FAMILY-RELATIVES-TELL-JURY-IN-KELL-CASE.html

MURDER WAS THE 2ND IN FAMILY, RELATIVES TELL JURY IN KELL CASE

By Chip Parkinson, Staff Writer

Published: Tuesday, June 25 1996 12:00 a.m. MDT

Lonnie Blackmon wasn't the first of his family to be murdered.

That revelation brought tears to the eyes of some jurors Monday who hold the fate of the man's killer in their hands. Blackmon's older brother, who traveled from Arkansas to testify, told the jury his sister was shot to death in a Kansas City, Kan., nightclub in 1981."It is hard enough to lose one loved one, but to lose a second child by the hands of a murderer is almost unbearable. But by the grace of God my family has been able to maintain some sense of purpose," said Larry Blackmon.

His sister's killer was never brought to justice - something Blackmon's family wanted to make sure happened in the death of their brother and son.

"That's why we're here," Blackmon's father, Paul Sr., said after court.

The 12-member jury will decide as early as Wednesday whether Troy Michael Kell should receive the death penalty for stabbing fellow inmate Lonnie Blackmon 67 times.

Larry Blackmon also testified that after hearing of the murder, their mother was unable to eat or sleep for months.

"She was haunted by nightmares - dreaming of and reliving the murder over and over again," he said. "She collapsed during the funeral and had to be carried from the church."

The handcuffed Blackmon was attacked on July 6, 1994 - within 45 seconds of being released from his cell for a medical visit in the Central Utah Correctional facility.

Kell straddled the man and "systematically" jabbed him with a dull, 3-inch-long shank, witnesses said. An autopsy revealed more than 50 of the wounds were concentrated around the man's eyes and neck - all delivered in no less than a minute and a half.

Prison video cameras captured the stabbing on tape. Prosecutors played it for the jurors in opening statements last week, but Black-mon's brother and father have not seen it.

"We don't want to. I don't think we could stand it . . . you'd never forget the pictures," Larry Black-mon said.

Prosecutors contended the killing was racially motivated and premeditated. Kell, who is white, testified he is a white separatist, but not a racist, and that Blackmon, who was black, had threatened to kill him.

Larry and Paul Blackmon said they had "no doubt" Lonnie's death was racially motivated and didn't believe Kell's word from the stand.

The jury took just under two hours Friday to convict Kell of capital murder. They unanimously agreed four aggravating circumstances existed at the time of the stabbing, including that it was committed in an atrocious and heinous manner.

Members of the panel will now weigh evidence about Kell's life and character before deciding whether he should be executed or spend life in prison without parole.

Kell is already serving two consecutive life-without-parole terms plus 40 years for shooting a Nevada man in 1986. Prosecutors sought the death penalty then, but the jury returned with the life sentences.

Jurors on Monday looked at a 5-inch-long by 4-inch-wide color photograph of Kell's victim in 1986, a 21-year-old man. He had been shot six times in the face and head at point-blank range.

Defense attorney Stephen McCaughey argued against introducing the photograph into evidence. It was gruesome and would only inflame the jury against his client, he said.

Sixth District Judge David L. Mower disagreed, noting it was relevant evidence regarding Kell's character and life before he entered the prison system.

Prosecutors also called about a dozen former or current Utah and Nevada prison officers to testify about Kell's actions during his incarceration the past 10 years in both states.

Nevada investigator Geoffrey Swann said Kell was a confirmed member of a white supremacist gang known as "Aryan Circle," a splinter group of a larger gang that is no longer active.

Other Nevada and Utah officers testified that Kell:

- Head-butted a Utah officer who was helping to search him outside his cell in April 1994. Before the incident, Kell reportedly said to the officer, "I've (expletive deleted) guys tougher than you. . . . Let's take off the cuffs and see how tough you are," the officer testified.

- Gathered intelligence reports about the Utah prison SWAT team, including work schedules and what weapons and equipment members used.

- Beat another Utah inmate in October 1993 so severely that he required several stitches to his face.

Threw boiled water and baby oil on a Nevada guard, who suffered first-degree burns to his groin.

- Threatened to kill a rookie guard and cut her head off. He also solicited the Ely, Nev., guard to bring drugs into the prison for him.

INTERNET SOURCE: http://www.kutv.com/news/top-stories/stories/vid_5706.shtml

Death Row Killer in Utah Gets Chance to Avoid Execution [Wednesday 3 July 2013]

(KUTV) A 20-year-old murder, caught on camera, is now just making its way into the federal court of appeals.

Troy Kell stabbed Lonnie Blackmon to death inside the Gunnison Prison 20-years ago, but the appeals just started.

Kell has spent the intervening years in court, first in trial and then in state appeals. His federal appeal process will surely take years more, even though the crime was captured on prison surveillance video.

The video shows that Kell stabbed Blackmon 67 times. The stabbing goes on for about five minutes while SWAT assembled and prepared. Utah paid a settlement to Blackmon’s family, partly because of the slow reaction.

Years after he killed Lonnie Blackmon—Kell says it was over an argument—Kell dashed out of his cell and assaulted another man, Jacques Miranda.

David Christensen, a federal defense lawyer, is trying to save Troy Kell’s life. He says, “It’s easy to get the idea that this is a monster, but that is not true.”

He says Kell’s trial was held inside prison and that Kell was shackled to the floor and that those may be reason to overturn the death sentence. He adds that the jury was not effectively told about life in prison. “What happens in the system is different from what happens outside,” he says.

While it has been 20 years, it could easily be 10 more before the courts make a final decision on life or death for Troy Kell.

(Copyright 2013 Sinclair Broadcasting Group) 

COMMENTS:

            For a case like Troy Kell, who is a Prison Killer who had murdered once outside bars before, he is obviously a danger to society and everyone around him. There is no way at all, any abolitionist can call him innocent of the prison homicide, his crime was capture on CCTV. He is guilty beyond any doubt! I suggest showing the video to any abolitionist, they will keep SILENT for sure!

            He is a White Supremacist who murdered an African American Inmate. This another great example of a white man killing an African American man, and being sentenced to death. Sadly, more than 18 years have passed, he is still alive. He needs to be put to death by the firing squad, not a painless death of lethal injection.

LINKS:

http://murderpedia.org/male.K/k/kell-troy-michael.htm

CHECK THESE TWO VIDEOS TO SEE THE FOOTAGE OF THE PRISON HOMICIDE: