Ivan Ray Murphy

Case record: Ivan Ray Murphy

Timeline

• January 9, 1989 — Ivan Ray Murphy and Douglas Stoff went to Lula Mae Denning’s home in Denison, Texas. Denning invited the men inside. Murphy and Stoff robbed Denning of jewelry, beat her to unconsciousness, and left her for dead; they returned several hours later to steal more jewelry.
• January 10, 1989 — Police discovered the body of eighty-year-old Lula Mae Denning in her Denison, Texas, residence.
• January 19, 1989 — Murphy was arrested in Hugo, Oklahoma, on unrelated charges and was interviewed by Denison police at the Choctaw County Jail in Hugo.
• October 1990 — Murphy was convicted and sentenced to death for the murder of Lula Mae Denning committed in the course of committing and attempting to commit robbery and burglary of a habitation.
• September 23, 1993 — The Texas Court of Criminal Appeals affirmed Murphy’s conviction and sentence in an unpublished opinion.
• October 11, 1994 — The Supreme Court denied Murphy’s petition for writ of certiorari in Murphy v. Texas, 115 S. Ct. 312 (1994).
• February 28, 1996 — The Texas Court of Criminal Appeals denied relief on Murphy’s first post-conviction application for writ of habeas corpus.
• August 19, 1997 — A federal district court judge entered final judgment dismissing Murphy’s first federal petition for writ of habeas corpus and denying all relief.
• September 18, 1997 — The district court granted certificate of appealability on two claims and denied relief on the remaining issues while denying Murphy’s motion to alter and amend the final judgment.
• March 2, 2000 — The Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed the district court’s denial of habeas corpus relief.
• September 13, 2000 — The Texas Court of Criminal Appeals granted Murphy permission to file a subsequent writ pursuant to Article 11.071 §§ 5 & 6(b), of the Texas Code of Criminal Procedure, but ultimately denied the requested relief.
• September 12, 2001 — The Texas Court of Criminal Appeals dismissed Murphy’s second successive application as an abuse of the writ pursuant to Article 11.071 § 5(a).
• October 30, 2001 — The Fifth Circuit granted Murphy authorization to file a successive petition for writ of habeas corpus in the district court, pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 2244(b)(3).
• November 6, 2001 — The district court dismissed without prejudice Murphy’s request for a stay of the execution date set for January 16, 2002.
• November 28, 2001 — The district court stayed Murphy’s execution.
• July 29, 2002 — The district court denied the petition for writ of habeas corpus.
• September 6, 2002 — The district court granted Murphy’s motion for certificate of appealability as to the Penry claim but denied certificate of appealability as to the remaining claims.
• May 1, 2003 — The Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals denied habeas relief on Murphy’s successive application.
• October 6, 2003 — The Supreme Court denied certiorari review.
• December 4, 2003 — Murphy was executed by lethal injection in Texas.

Background

Ivan Ray Murphy was scheduled to be executed in Texas on December 4, 2003. Murphy was 38 at the time of his execution.

Murphy had a prior criminal history in Texas and Oklahoma, including theft convictions.

The offence

Eighty-year-old Lula Mae Denning was found dead in her Denison, Texas, residence. Death was the result of approximately six blows to the head by a blunt object.

Murphy and Douglas Stoff went to Denning’s home with intent to rob her. Denning was described as a longtime acquaintance and a lifetime friend of Murphy who invited the men inside. The men robbed Denning of jewelry, beat her to unconsciousness, and left her for dead; they returned several hours later to steal additional jewelry to sell for drugs.

During the investigation and trial evidence, prosecutors described the weapons used as either Denning’s cane and/or a sawed-off shotgun brought to the scene, and also referenced that Murphy had witnessed Stoff hit Denning with a hammer as stated in Murphy’s confession.

Victim

• Victim: Lula Mae Denning
• Age: 80
• Place: Denison, Texas

Investigation

An anonymous phone call implicated Ivan Ray Murphy in the murder.

Murphy was interviewed by Denison police while incarcerated at the Choctaw County Jail in Hugo, Oklahoma.

Murphy gave police a written statement describing that:

• he and Doug Stoff went to Denning’s home intending to rob her,
• Denning let them into her home because Murphy was a longtime acquaintance,
• Stoff was to steal the contents of Denning’s purse while Murphy distracted Denning,
• Denning served him a bowl of ice cream,
• Murphy went outside to retrieve Denning’s newspaper,
• upon returning he found Stoff arguing with Denning and saw Stoff hit her on the head with a hammer,
• they then fled the scene.

Other evidence presented at trial contradicted Murphy’s version. The evidence described:

• Murphy trading a ring belonging to Denning for drugs at an acquaintance’s house around midnight on the night of the murder,
• Murphy and Stoff giving other items of jewelry to their respective girlfriends on the night of the murder,
• Murphy’s fingerprint found on the inside of the ice cream bowl,
• the outside of the bowl being wiped clean,
• traces of blood found on the clothes Murphy wore the evening of the murder,
• Denning’s newspaper being found unrolled under Denning’s chair and covered in what appeared to be blood.

Jailhouse informant Michael McGregor testified that:

• while incarcerated at Grayson County Jail, Murphy confessed that he and Doug Stoff went to Denning’s home to rob her,
• Stoff “knocked her down” and Murphy beat her,
• Stoff rummaged around Denning’s house looking for something to steal so they could buy drugs,
• Stoff, Murphy, and Stoff’s sister bought drugs, split into three ways,
• they later went back to Denning’s house for more items to steal and found Denning had not moved.

Arrest

Murphy was arrested in Hugo, Oklahoma, on January 19, 1989, on unrelated charges.

Trial

Murphy was indicted by a Grayson County Grand Jury for the capital murder of Lula Mae Denning, specifically charging that he had committed murder during the course of the commission of a robbery or burglary.

Verdict and sentencing

A jury found Murphy guilty of capital murder and answered affirmatively two special issues set forth in the version of article 37.071 of the Texas Code of Criminal Procedure that was in effect at the time of the offense. The trial court imposed the sentence of death.

In the same case, accomplice Douglas Wayne Stoff received a life sentence.

Appeals

Murphy pursued post-conviction relief in state and federal court.

Supreme Court

• Murphy v. Texas, 115 S. Ct. 312 (1994) — certiorari review was denied on October 11, 1994.
• The Supreme Court denied certiorari review again on October 6, 2003.

Texas Court of Criminal Appeals

• The Texas Court of Criminal Appeals affirmed Murphy’s conviction and sentence in an unpublished opinion on September 23, 1993.
• The court denied relief on Murphy’s first post-conviction application for writ of habeas corpus on February 28, 1996.
• The Texas Court of Criminal Appeals denied requested relief after granting permission to file a subsequent writ on September 13, 2000.
• The court dismissed Murphy’s second successive application as an abuse of the writ pursuant to Article 11.071 § 5(a) on September 12, 2001.

Federal courts (habeas corpus)

Murphy’s federal habeas corpus proceedings included:

• denial of his first federal petition for writ of habeas corpus with final judgment entered August 19, 1997,
• certificate of appealability granted on two claims on September 18, 1997,
• Fifth Circuit affirmance of the district court’s denial of habeas corpus relief on March 2, 2000.

A successive petition was also authorized by the Fifth Circuit and then dismissed without prejudice in relation to a request for a stay of execution on November 6, 2001. The district court stayed execution on November 28, 2001, later denied habeas relief on July 29, 2002, and granted certificate of appealability as to the Penry claim on September 6, 2002.

The Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals denied habeas relief on Murphy’s successive application on May 1, 2003.

Outcome

Murphy was executed by lethal injection in Texas on December 4, 2003.

Last statement

Murphy’s final statement was:

"Yes sir, I do. I would like to thank everybody for coming out tonight and celebrating life. This is a celebration of life, not death. Through Jesus Christ, we have victory over death. I would like to thank the Holy Father and Pope John Paul for their angelic blessings and all the prayers and support. And thanks to Father (name unknown) and Guido Todeschini for your love and support. I want to thank everybody around the world and Father, let your will be done. I am going to keep this statement short. I love you all. I am ready, Warden."

Final meal

Murphy’s final meal consisted of:

• Fried chicken
• Fried fish
• Fried pork chops
• French fries
• Fried onion rings
• Ketchup and tartar sauce

Other details

Prosecutorial and evidentiary details noted at trial

A plastic bowl and evidence related to fingerprints were used to link Murphy to the ice cream served by Denning:

• Prosecutors stated that Murphy’s fingerprint was found on the inside of a Cool Whip bowl containing ice cream in Denning’s home.

Prior criminal history

Murphy received a 3 year sentence in the Texas Department of Criminal Justice for theft in September 1983; the sentence was probated. His probation was revoked on September 6, 1984, and in October 1984 he was ordered to serve his original three year prison sentence for theft.

He was paroled to Oklahoma in May 1985.

In May 1986, Murphy was sentenced to four years in state prison after pleading guilty to knowingly concealing stolen property in Choctaw County, Oklahoma. This sentence ran concurrently with a three year sentence in the Department of Corrections in Oklahoma for larceny of an automobile.

In September 1986, Murphy was sentenced to two years in Department of Corrections in Oklahoma for 2 counts of grand larceny.

On June 30, 1989, Murphy was sentenced to two 7-year prison sentences to run concurrently in the Department of Corrections in Oklahoma on two charges of shooting with intent to kill.

Statements attributed to others at execution

Denning’s sons, Perry Denning and Richard Denning, expressed anger toward Murphy for his lack of remorse.

Perry Denning said:

"It's easy to feign religion in the face of death like that, but Christianity is about the Lord's forgiveness, acknowledgment of one's sins of the past and there was absolutely none of that. Not wanting to be offensive to anyone, it was just religious babble."

Perry Denning also said:

"Just howling in the trees, just wind in the trees. Without true remorse, it means nothing."

Richard Denning said:

"'Sorry' would have helped a lot"

Former Grayson County District Attorney Robert Jarvis recalled evidence in Murphy’s capital murder trial and said:

"We dusted the inside of a Cool Whip bowl and found his fingerprint"

Jarvis also said:

"He told officers he hadn't been there in 20 years. He was lying about that."

Jarvis said:

"I remember a little old lady sitting in her chair with her blood splattered all over the wall and the ceiling and dripping down on the newspaper"

Jarvis also said:

"She died in her own chair in her own living room. It was horrible."

Jarvis said:

"They took either her cane and or a sawed-off shotgun they brought with them and just beat her as she sat in her chair."

Jarvis also said:

"It's a case of bad luck."

and:

"I feel very confident we have the correct individual that did the crime. I don't have any problems with this verdict at all."

Murphy’s assertions of innocence

In an interview before his execution, Murphy said:

"I wasn't there"

and:

"No way I can be associated with this crime. I know I got framed."

Murphy also said:

"Police took advantage of me because I was in a drunken stupor"

and:

"Why would we pick Ivan Ray Murphy to pin a murder on?"

Murphy said of the Oklahoma shooting incident:

"I was wrong for having a gun"

and:

"But that's what happens when you're weak. To me, I was at the wrong place at the wrong time. It's a case of bad luck. I know I didn't kill nobody. I'm not a killer."

Accomplice sentencing

Douglas Wayne Stoff received a life sentence for murder and later received an additional 5-year sentence for possession of a deadly weapon in prison in September 1995.

Citations

• Murphy v. State, __ S.W.2d __ (1993) (Unpublished).
• Murphy v. Texas, 115 S. Ct. 312 (1994) (Cert. Denied).
• Murphy v. Johnson, __ F.3d __ (5th Cir. 2000).