- The Utah Board of Pardons denied clemency for death row inmate Ralph Menzies, upholding his execution.
- Menzies was convicted for the 1986 murder of Maurine Hunsaker in Cottonwood Canyon.
- His attorneys cited terminal dementia and alleged perjured testimony; victim's family seeks closure.
SALT LAKE CITY — The Utah Board of Pardons and Parole will not change death row inmate Ralph Leroy Menzies' death sentence.
The board announced Tuesday that Menzies' request for clemency has been denied.
"The board heard and carefully considered the testimony of witnesses called by both Mr. Menzies and the state. The board also heard and thoughtfully considered testimony from 10 victim representatives. After carefully reviewing all submitted information and considering all arguments from the parties, the board does not find cause to commute Mr. Menzies' death sentence," the board wrote in its decision.
The Utah Department of Corrections will now continue to prepare for Menzies' scheduled execution by firing squad on Sept. 5.
Menzies, 67, was convicted of capital murder in the 1986 killing of Maurine Hunsaker, a 26-year-old mother of three, who Menzies robbed, kidnapped, tethered to a tree near Storm Mountain in Big Cottonwood Canyon and slit her throat. Next February will mark 40 years since Hunsaker was murdered.
He had asked the Utah Board of Pardons and Parole to change his sentence to life in prison without the possibility of parole. A two-day commutation hearing was held last week before the board and arguments on both sides of the issue were presented.
Menzies' attorneys argued that their client has terminal dementia and not long to live regardless of whether he is executed. They also argued that his death sentence was based in part on perjured testimony from another inmate who later admitted he lied when he said in court that Menzies had described killing Hunsaker as one of the greatest thrills of his life.
"Ralph Menzies is a 67-year-old man with progressively worsening dementia. He's tethered to an oxygen tank, uses a wheelchair, is confused and disoriented, and no longer understands why Utah is trying to kill him," said Lindsey Layer, an attorney for Menzies, in a prepared statement following the board's announcement.
"This is reason enough to grant mercy, but we also know that the sentencing judge no longer supports the basis for Mr. Menzies' death sentence, the district attorney's independent conviction integrity review panel concluded that his death sentence should be vacated because it was obtained through the use of perjury, and Mr. Menzies's record for nearly 40 years on death row confirms he poses no threat to anyone in prison if given a life without parole sentence. We will continue our fight to save his life to avoid a grotesque spectacle of shooting to death a severely debilitated man with dementia."
Maurine Hunsaker's family members, however, say Menzies has never shown remorse and the family has had to wait nearly 40 years for justice.
"It is time for the family to have some closure that we've all been waiting for," Nic Hunsaker, Maurine Hunsaker's youngest son, told the board.
"Ralph, I'll see your (expletive) in the execution chamber," an angry Matt Hunsaker, Maurine Hunsaker's oldest son, told Menzies directly during the hearing.
This story may be updated.
