A white ex-paratrooper was spared the death penalty Thursday after a jury deadlocked over his sentence for the racially motivated murders of two black residents in 1995.
A single juror spared James Norman Burmeister II from becoming the sixth white person in the United States sentenced to die for killing a black person since the death penalty was reinstated 21 years ago.With the jury deadlocked, Burmeister was automatically sentenced to two consecutive life sentences in prison without chance of parole, along with an additional 16 to 20 years for conspiring to kill the couple.
Eleven of 12 jury members favored a death sentence, but Superior Court Judge Coy Brewer had to impose the life sentences because the jury's vote was not unanimous.
The former Fort Bragg soldier appeared relieved as Brewer pronounced his sentence for the murders of Jackie Burden, 27, and Michael James, 36. Behind him, his mother, Kathleen, and sister, Michelle, appeared calm, having been advised earlier that the jury was hopelessly deadlocked.
"First and foremost I'd like to apologize to all families involved because I know this has been a great strain on everybody," Burmeister said. "If the state has chosen to blame me for this, so be it for now. I'm not conceding and I'm not going to quit. It is not over by any means. It's not over."
Family members of both victims said they refused to accept the apology.
"I do not accept Mr. Burmeister's remarks," said Jackie Burden's aunt, Georgia Burden. "It's too little, too late."
Michael James' mother, Lillie, said there was no remorse in Burmeister's voice. "His apology was useless," she said. "That man has a heart as cold as steel."
Lead prosecutor Edward Grannis had a single statement for the media: "We're delighted the (SOB) will be put away for life."
Defense attorneys said Burmeister was "much more remorseful than has been reported," referring to reports that he showed little emotion during the three-week trial and smirked at the cameras and victims' families.
They did not explain what Burmeister meant when he that he wasn't going to quit.
"What would you say if you were 21 years old and facing exile in the prison system?" Larry McGlothlin asked. "He's going to appeal."
Jurors told reporters afterward that they were upset that Burmeister was spared a death sentence. There are currently 162 people on death row in North Carolina. Eight have been executed since the death penalty was reinstated.
"There could be nothing more brutal than what he did to those people," said Darcy Day, 28, a firefighter who was foreman for the verdict portion of the trial. "Eleven of us agreed that he deserved the death penalty. It was disappointing that one person held out."
The decision ends just one chapter of the Army's public-relations nightmare, which intensified when Burmeister shot James in the head and Burden in the back and head as they walked near downtown Fayetteville. The murders were within sight of the courthouse and seven miles from Fort Bragg, home to the elite 82nd Airborne Division.
Burmeister, 21, a former member of the 82nd, was dishonorably discharged in July 1996 after the murders led Army Secretary Togo West to initiate a nationwide investigation of extremist activity in the ranks.
Dist. by Scripps Howard News Service.