Scott Hain
Juvenile Offender in Oklahoma
Executed on April 3, 2003
Case Overview
Letters Asking for Clemency
Briefs, Petitions, etc.
News
Case Overview
Case Summary
Scott Hain was 17 years of age at the time of his arrest for the October 6, 1987 murder of Michael Houghton and Laura Sanders. Because Hain was a juvenile - under 18 years of age at the time of his crime - his execution would be contrary to American standards of justice, fairness, and decency as well as international law. In opposing his execution, we do not, in any way, seek either to excuse the crime or to minimize the pain and suffering it caused the family and friends of the victim.
The Facts of the Case
Scott Hain and Robert Lambert were drinking in Tulsa, Oklahoma, looking for something to steal when they noticed Scott Haughton and Laura Sanders in a parking lot. Hain and Lambert then stole Haughton's car, taking Haughton and Sanders with them. They eventually stopped to rob the couple and placed them in the trunk of the car. Lambert then set fire to the car, killing both Haughton and Sanders. Hain was convicted of a capital felony murder charge.
Hain's Childhood ( Source: habeas petition dated July 3, 1998)
Scott Hain was born on June 2, 1970, in Tulsa, to Don Hain and Aleta Catron Hain. The Hains married in 1966, had a daughter, Shawn, in 1968, and had Scott two years later. Aleta Hain dropped out of school in the ninth grade and worked in a variety of jobs. A heavy drinker, Aleta Hain was, at the time of Hain's first trial, under court-ordered alcoholism treatment, having been arrested for driving under the influence three times in two years. Don Hain, a painter by profession, was also a very heavy drinker, and did not spend much time at home. Aleta Hain would prepare dinner for her husband - when he was home - and after dinner join him at a local bar. Hain and his sister Shawn fended for themselves. They did their homework by themselves and put themselves to bed.
Hain was held back in the first grade, an early sign of possible developmental difficulties. Problems at home grew. Hain reports that his father would hit him on the arms and legs with a wooden paddle. At about the time Hain was in the third grade, a sixteen year old babysitter sexually abused him and his sister. Hain was again held back in the fifth grade.
Don Hain introduced Hain to marijuana when he was nine or ten years of age. Two or three years later the family moved to Texas, in an attempt to escape debts. Hain began to smoke marijuana more regularly. Hain began to get in to more trouble, so leaving his family in Texas, he moved back to Tulsa to live with a family friend, Lou Mayfield.
While in Tulsa with Ms. Mayfield, Hain avoided trouble and stayed in school. Ms. Mayfield's influence was positive. Although the various records do not reflect the exact age at which Hain lived with Ms. Mayfield, it appears that he did so after leaving Texas at around age 12-13. Hain's family moved back to Tulsa about a year later, in approximately 1984, and Hain moved back in to the family home. It was at this juncture Hain began to get in to more serious trouble.
In May 1984, Hain was charged with grand larceny and knowingly concealing stolen property. He was adjudicated a delinquent and placed on probation. During the next year, when Hain was about 14-15 years old, he was often in the juvenile courts for various offenses such as trespassing, theft, and unauthorized use of a motor vehicle. Placement in various juvenile facilities was attempted, but Hain often walked away. In September 1985 he was formally placed in the custody of the Department of Human Services, and a month later incarcerated at the Rader Treatment Center in Sand Springs (near Tulsa). Hain's progress at Rader was poor. In February 1987, Hain was absent without leave (AWOL) from Rader. While AWOL, Hain and his father were involved in a burglary. Although the burglary charges were dropped, Hain was returned to Rader for "treatment." He went absent without leave (AWOL) from Rader in March 1987, but was caught and returned. He then went AWOL again - for the last time - in July that same year. Hain went with his father to Kansas, where his father found work for Hain in a warehouse. Hain would steal items from the warehouse and give them to his father, who sold them in a bar across the street from where Hain and his father were living. Police questioned them about their activities, and they quickly returned to Oklahoma.
In the three months following Hain's final absence from Rader, he spent the majority of his time on the streets of Tulsa, taking drugs daily. Hain reportedly increased his daily usage of alcohol, crystal, crack, marijuana, and speed. He also admitted that he had used LSD, PCP, and barbiturates. It was during this time of living on the streets and daily chronic drug use that Hain met Robert Lambert and accompanied Lambert on the events that lead them both to death row. Until this crime, Hain had never been involved in an act of violence.
Executing Juvenile Offenders is Contrary to International Law
The execution of child offenders is in contravention of international law and fundamental standards of human rights. The ultimate goal of the international community is to abolish the death penalty under all circumstances, however, until that time there are restrictions on the categories of persons who can be executed, juveniles being one of the restricted categories. The prohibition of the execution of juveniles is referenced in a number of international treaties, declarations, and statements by international bodies, in addition to the laws of the majority of nations. Please refer to the International
Instruments section, for more explanations of juvenile offenders and international law.
Juvenile Offenders: Issues of Mitigation
By their very nature, teenagers are less mature, and therefore less culpable than adults. Adolescence is a transitional period of life when cognitive abilities, emotions, judgment, impulse control, and identity are still developing. The IJP offers overviews on brain
development and trauma as possible mitigation factors for juvenile offenders.
Letters Asking for Clemency
Briefs, Petitions, Etc.
Petition for a Writ of Habeas Corpus - Trial
Level
Petition for a Writ of Certiorari in
the U.S. Supreme Court (Habeus Corpus)
For other briefs involving other juveniles click here.
News
April 3, 2003 - Oklahoma executed Scott Hain. He died approximately two hours after the U.S. Supreme Court overturned a stay. Hain was pronounced dead at 8:39 p.m. CST
April 3, 2003 - The U.S. Supreme Court has lifted the stay of execution granted by the Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals.
April 3, 2003 - The 10th Circuit, sitting en banc (with two judges recusing), voted 7-2 to keep the stay of execution in place. The U.S. Supreme Court can still overturn the stay.
April 2, 2003 - The Tenth Circuit entered a stay of execution for Scott Allen Hain. The panel denied panel rehearing, but stayed the execution to allow the full court time to vote on the pending petition for en banc review. Click here to read the Tenth Circuit's order.
April 1, 2003 - The Oklahoma Court of Criminal Appeals rejected Scott Allen Hain's second application for post-conviction relief.
March 31, 2003 - The Oklahoma Board of Pardons and Paroles denied Hain's clemency petition. The vote is a non-binding recommendation to Governor Henry.
March 26, 2003 - The 10th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled 2-1 in Hain's collateral appeal, that death row inmates are not entitled to have federally appointed and funded lawyers represent them in state clemency proceedings. This ruling means that Hain will essentially be unrepresented at his clemency hearing. His hearing is scheduled for Monday.
January 31, 2003 - Oklahoma Court of Criminal Appeals set execution date for April 3, 2003.
January 27, 2003 - Oklahoma Attorney General Drew Edmondson, requested that an execution date be set for Scott Hain.
January 27, 2003 - U.S. Supreme Court denies Hain's cert petition.
Amnesty International: US: More double standards as another child offender set to be executed.
Oklahoma executes man who killed when he was 17
OKLAHOMA CITY, Oklahoma (Reuters) -- Oklahoma Thursday executed a man who robbed and burned to death two restaurant workers when he was 17 in a case that raised questions about implementing capital punishment for a crime committed by a minor. Scott Allen Hain, 32, died at 8:35 p.m., four minutes after prison officials injected him with a lethal cocktail of poisons to stop his heart and breathing. He had no final statement. Hours before Hain was put to death, the U.S. Supreme Court overturned a stay on the execution that had been issued by a federal appeals court in Denver Wednesday. The case drew international attention because Hain was 17 at the time of the murder and raised questions about implementing the death penalty for crimes committed by minors. The United States is one of a handful of nations that has executed juvenile offenders in the past five years.
Hain was executed for the 1987 double murder of Michael William Houghton and Laura Lee Sanders. Hain and an accomplice, Robert Wayne Lambert, then 21, abducted the two outside a Tulsa bar, robbed them of $565, then locked the couple in the trunk of a car and burned them alive. Police said Hain and Lambert left the victims to burn to death in a car and then returned to the scene to inspect the charred corpses of their victims. Both were given the death penalty in the case. Lambert has not yet been executed. Hain's last requested meal was cheeseburgers, onion rings and ice cream. "Given Hain's age at the time of the crime, his execution would be contrary to American standards of justice, fairness and decency, which punish according to the degree of culpability and reserve the death penalty for the 'worst of the worst' offenders," the American Civil Liberties Union of Oklahoma said in a statement. The group was backing life in prison as a punishment for Hain. The decision by the Supreme Court to overturn the stay indicates that the body will not likely consider banning executions in certain cases on the basis that the offenders were juveniles at the time they committed crimes, court watchers said. About 17 family members and friends of the victim were present for the execution.
Condemned man gets last-minute delay
A divided appeals court in Denver on Wednesday postponed tonight's scheduled
execution of Scott Allen Hain for the 1987 slayings of two Tulsa restaurant
workers.
The 10th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, in an unusual after-hours decision,
said Hain's execution will be stayed while the court considers his latest
appeal.
The judges split 2-1.
In his appeal, Hain seeks federal funds to pay his lawyers for preparing his
case for a second clemency hearing.
The Oklahoma Pardon and Parole Board on Monday denied Hain's request for
clemency. His lawyer, Steven Presson, appeared at the hearing with Hain, but
Presson said he could not present a credible case for clemency because he
hadn't been able to prepare it because of lack of funds.
"If Hain would ultimately prevail in this appeal, it remains possible that
he could persuade the Oklahoma Pardon and Parole Board to reconsider its
decision and/or grant him a new clemency hearing," judges Mary Beck Briscoe
of Lawrence, Kan., and Carlos Lucero of Denver wrote in a six-page decision.
In his dissent, judge Michael Murphy of Salt Lake City wrote, "There is
simply nothing in the record before this court demonstrating any realistic
possibility that Hain could ever obtain a second clemency hearing."
He called the majority's position that the state board might give Hain a
second clemency hearing "wild speculation."
Said Charlie Price, a spokesman for state Attorney General Drew Edmondson,
"Obviously we are very disappointed that the stay was issued and we will
continue to research our legal options to try to find a way to vacate the
stay. This is just cruel for the families of the victims to have to go
through this and we will do everything we can to see justice is done in this
case."
Hain, 32, was convicted of robbing and murdering Michael Houghton, 27, and
Laura Lee Sanders, 22, in 1987. Hain was 17 at the time.
Hain and accomplice Robert Lambert stuffed the victims into the trunk of a
car, then lit the car on fire, prosecutors said.
Both defendants were sentenced to die. Lambert has not been executed.
The issue of executing juvenile offenders came up during Hain's clemency
hearing Monday.
Presson argued that the United States is one of few nations worldwide that
execute juvenile offenders. Amnesty International and other anti-death
penalty groups have assailed Hain's planned execution as a violation of
international law.
But in Hain's case, the issue isn't that simple, state Assistant Attorney
General Jennifer Miller said.
Hain has a criminal history that dates back to his early teens. He was
implicated in several rapes and assaults in Kansas and Tulsa, although he
wasn't prosecuted for those crimes.
The slayings of Houghton and Sanders were particularly galling, Miller said.
Hain and Lambert robbed their victims of $565, then waited as their victims
burned in the trunk of Sanders' car, prosecutors said. Transcripts from a
police interview with Hain indicated that he and Lambert could hear their
pleas to be set free and their attempts to break out of the trunk as the car
burned.
They left, then later returned to make sure the car was still burning,
prosecutors said.
"When a person looks at his age and the facts of this case, I just don't
think it would make a difference," Miller said. "Just like with the jury.
They knew he was 17, and they saw how heinous the crime was."
Hain will be the second juvenile offender executed in Oklahoma. Sean
Sellers, executed at age 29 in 1999, was 16 when he killed three people in
1985 and 1986.
A recent poll, meanwhile, showed that two-thirds of Oklahomans surveyed
would support legislation banning the execution of people who committed
crimes when they were juveniles.
The poll showed that 62.8 percent of those surveyed would favor legislation
that banned executing juvenile offenders if a life-without-parole sentence
were offered as an alternative. Twenty-five percent of those polled said
they would oppose such legislation.
University of Oklahoma pollsters interviewed 400 people between March 17 and
March 27. The poll has a 5 percent margin of error.
Susan Sharp, a sociology professor at OU, said the poll's results were
unexpected.
"Oklahomans are pretty tough on crime," she said.
(source: The Oklahoman)
Man loses bid to stop execution
A man scheduled to be executed Thursday for the 1987 burning death of a
Tulsa couple lost another appeal Tuesday to delay his execution.
The Oklahoma Court of Criminal Appeals rejected Scott Allen Hain's second
application for post- conviction relief.
The court last week turned down Hain's request for a stay of execution. Hain
then filed for another stay.
Monday, the state Pardon and Parole Board denied clemency for Hain.
Hain and Robert Wayne Lambert were convicted of killing Michael William
Houghton and Laura Lee Sanders. They were restaurant workers who were
abducted outside a Tulsa bar in 1987.
They were robbed, put in the trunk of Sanders' car and taken to a secluded
site in Creek County.
The car was set on fire, burning the couple to death.
Hain was 17 when the crime occurred.
The Court of Criminal Appeals said Tuesday that Hain's latest request for
post-conviction relief claimed that standards have evolved among the states
to the degree that the execution of a person who was 17 or younger at the
time the offense was committed constitutes unusual punishment and is
prohibited by the Oklahoma Constitution.
The appellate court said Hain argued that a national consensus against
juvenile executions has emerged since the Court of Criminal Appeals
considered his first post- conviction application.
The court said Hain argued that this claim couldn't have been brought in his
original application because there was not sufficient data to allow the
Court of Criminal Appeals to conclude the execution of juveniles was cruel
or unusual punishment.
Hain failed to show the factual basis of his claim has been previously
unavailable, the court said.
He hasn't cited case law from the U.S. Supreme Court or the Court of
Criminal Appeals in support of the argument, the court said.
"Further, the crux of (Hain's) argument is that he should not be subject to
execution due to his young age at the time of the commission of the
offense," the court said. "This argument was raised, thoroughly considered
and rejected by this court on direct appeal."
(source: The Oklahoman)
Clemency denied for inmate
McALESTER (AP) -- The state Pardon and Parole Board voted Monday not recommend clemency for Oklahoma death row inmate Scott Allen Hain. The board voted 5-to-0 against recommending clemency. Hain is to be put to death Thursday for the 1987 deaths of Michael Houghton and Laura Lee Sanders. Houghton and Sanders were abducted and robbed outside a Tulsa bar then forced into the trunk of Sanders' car. The car was taken to Creek County and set on fire. Various groups have asked Gov. Henry to commute Hain's sentence to life in prison because he was 17 at the time of the crime.
Inmates on death row lose lawyer funding
In Denver, a divided appeals court ruled Wednesday that death row inmates
are not entitled to have federally appointed and funded lawyers represent
them in state clemency proceedings.
The 10th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled 2-1 in the case of Oklahoma
inmate Scott Allen Hain, who is scheduled to be executed April 3 for the
1987 killings of 2 Tulsa restaurant workers.
The ruling applies to all 6 states making up the 10th Circuit.
Hain has a state clemency hearing scheduled for Monday.
"He's completely unrepresented by counsel," one of Hain's federal court
lawyers said regarding the state proceeding.
The attorney, Steve Presson, speaking from his office in Norman, said Hain
"is essentially on his own" at the clemency board.
Presson and co-counsel Robert Jackson had sought a ruling that federal
courts, which are paying them to represent Hain in his federal court
proceedings in Tulsa and Denver, were obligated under federal law to
represent him in the state proceeding at federal expense. The lawyers
argued the obligation existed because Hain had been denied relief in
federal courts and the state proceeding was his next step.
On Friday, the appeals court denied Hain's emergency request to postpone
his execution pending the outcome of the appeal decided Wednesday.
Presson said he, perhaps as early as today, will petition the 11 full-time
10th Circuit judges to reconsider Wednesday's decision of a three-judge
panel.
The court rarely agrees to reconsider decisions, but the chances are
somewhat improved when, as in Hain's case, 1 judge dissented.
Oklahoma Assistant Attorney General Robert Whittaker, who is battling
Hain's efforts to avoid execution, said "the appeal to obtain money (for
the defense lawyers) was legitimate."
But Whittaker said the earlier attempt to stay the execution pending the
appeal "takes on the appearance of a delay tactic" because the appeal did
not challenge the conviction or the sentence.
Hain, then 17, was convicted of murdering Michael Houghton, 27, and Laura
Lee Sanders, 21, after abducting them from the Brookside Bar parking lot.
Press Release---W.A. Drew Edmondson, Attorney General
Execution Date Set for Hain-----01/31/2003
The Oklahoma Court of Criminal Appeals today set April 3 as the execution
date for death row inmate Scott Allen Hain. Attorney General Drew
Edmondson asked the court to set the execution date after the United
States Supreme Court denied Hain's final appeal Jan. 27.
Hain, 32, was sentenced to death in Creek County District Court for the
Oct. 6, 1987, murders of Michael William Houghton, 27, and Laura Lee
Sanders, 22. Hain and co-defendant Robert Wayne Lambert kidnaped Houghton
and Sanders from the Brookside Bar parking lot in Tulsa. After robbing
Houghton, Hain and Lambert forced Houghton and Sanders into the trunk of
Sanders' car. They drove the car to a rural location in Creek County and
burned it with Houghton and Sanders still in the trunk.
Hain and Lambert were arrested in Tulsa Oct. 9, 1987. Both were convicted
and given the death penalty. Lambert's appeal is pending before the
United States District Court for the Northern District of Oklahoma.
Currently, 3 Oklahoma death row inmates are scheduled for execution.
Bobby Joe Fields, Oklahoma County, Feb. 13; John Michael Hooker, Oklahoma
County, March 25, and David Jay Brown, Grady County, March 27. Execution
dates have been requested for Oklahoma County inmates Walanzo Deon
Robinson, Larry Kenneth Jackson and Don Wilson Hawkins, Jr.
(source: Attorney General's office)
Hain execution set for April 3
2003-01-31
By The Associated Press
Oklahoma death row inmate Scott Allen Hain was scheduled to be executed on April 3 by the Oklahoma Court of Criminal Appeals Friday.
Hain, 32, was sentenced to death in Creek County for the Oct. 6, 1987, murders of Michael William Houghton, 27, and Laura Lee Sanders, 22.
Hain was 17 when he and an older friend, co-defendant Robert Wayne Lambert, kidnapped the couple from a Tulsa nightspot and robbed Houghton before placing them in the trunk of Sanders' car.
They drove the car to a rural area and burned it with Houghton and Sanders still in the trunk.
Lambert was also sentenced to death and his appeal is pending.
Attorney General Drew Edmondson requested Hain's execution date on Monday after his final appeal was denied by the U.S. Supreme Court.
Attorneys for Hain had asked the high court to set the minimum age for imposing the death penalty at 18 at the time the crime was committed.
Three other death row inmates are scheduled for execution. Bobby Joe Fields is scheduled to die on Feb. 13, John Michael Hooker's execution is set for March 25 and David Jay Brown is scheduled to die on March 27.
Court Refuses Juvenile Execution Case
By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
Filed at 11:12 a.m. ET
WASHINGTON (AP) -- The Supreme Court on Monday rejected an Oklahoma appeal that death penalty opponents considered their best hope of reopening a high court examination of juvenile executions.
The action, taken without comment, seemed to put off for now speculation that the justices would soon bar states from executing juvenile death row inmates.
Only a handful of states have put to death people who committed their crimes when they were under 18, a politically charged practice in America and internationally.
Last fall, four of the nine justices complained that executing young killers violates the Constitution's ban on cruel and unusual punishment and is a ``shameful practice.''
``The practice of executing such offenders is a relic of the past and is inconsistent with evolving standards of decency in a civilized society,'' Justice John Paul Stevens wrote in October in an opinion, joined by Justices David H. Souter, Ruth Bader Ginsburg and Stephen Breyer.
The four justices, the more liberal wing of the court, had the votes to force their colleagues to hear arguments in the Oklahoma case. But, by refusing to do that, the justices signaled that there is no fifth vote to strike down juvenile executions. Justice Sandra Day O'Connor, a moderate conservative, is considered a crucial swing vote.
The Supreme Court has allowed the death penalty to be imposed on killers who were 16 or 17 at the time of their crimes. Lawyers for Oklahoma inmate Scott Allen Hain said the minimum age should be raised to 18.
``While they appear to be fully-grown physically and may seem to be functioning as adults, their judgment and impulse-control are simply not that of adults,'' attorney Steven Presson told justices in filings.
Hain was 17 when he and an older friend abducted and killed a young couple in 1987. They locked the victims in their car trunk and set it afire.
Oklahoma assistant attorney general Robert Whittaker told justices that violent crime by juveniles has been increasing, and states need tools to punish the offenders.
``Homicidal crimes by juveniles have continued to confront the American public, from the school shootings in Columbine to the Washington Beltway snipers,'' he wrote in court papers.
Whittaker said charges against a 17-year-old in the sniper case ``may well be a catalyst for further national debate and legislative activity.'' He also said that there was no public outrage over the decision to put Lee Boyd Malvo on trial in Virginia, where he could receive the death penalty, instead of others states like Maryland that do not execute 17-year-olds.
Malvo and an older man who treated him like a son have been linked to 19 shootings, including 13 deaths, in Maryland, Virginia, Louisiana, Georgia, Alabama and Washington, D.C.
The Supreme Court has limited executions. Most recently, the justices abolished executions for the mentally retarded last summer.
``Both juvenile and mentally retarded offenders have `the mind of a child,' albeit often in the body of an adult,'' Presson said.
The case is Hain v. Mullin, 02-6438.
|
