Jay Kelly Pinkerton

Case record

Timeline

• May 15, 1986 — Jay Kelly Pinkerton was executed by lethal injection in Texas.
• May 14, 1986 — A federal appeals court rejected Pinkerton's bid for a fourth stay.
• 26 minutes before his execution — Judge Hayden W. Head Jr. granted a stay three days before his scheduled execution; his next date was also stayed 26 minutes before execution was carried out.
• October 26, 1979 — A prowler invaded the home of 30-year-old Sarah Lawrence.
• September 26, 1980 — Pinkerton was arrested and charged with one count of first-degree murder.
• April 9, 1980 — 25-year-old Sherry Welch was murdered in the back room of an Amarillo furniture store that she managed.
• May 30, 1981 — A jury of seven men and five women found Pinkerton guilty in the Sarah Lawrence case; he was sentenced to die.
• May 13, 1982 — Pinkerton was convicted and received a second death sentence in the Sherry Welch case.
• May 15, 1986 — Pinkerton was executed by lethal injection.

Background

Jay Kelly Pinkerton was executed in Texas on May 15, 1986. He was born in 1969 and was described as a native of Amarillo, Texas. He dropped out of school by age 17 to work as an apprentice butcher.

He was reported to have become the youngest man ever to be executed in Texas at the age of 24, seven years after the murders.

The offence

At the young age of 17, Jay Kelly Pinkerton raped and murdered two women in Amarillo.

Sarah Donn Lawrence

On October 26, 1979, 30-year-old Sarah Donn Lawrence was killed after a prowler invaded her home. The description of the killing was that Pinkerton slashed her throat and stabbed her “30-odd times” with a butcher knife. He raped Lawrence’s corpse and inflicted grisly post-mortem mutilations.

The account also stated that Pinkerton raped then stabbed Lawrence over 30 times and that he then raped her again while her children slept down the hall.

Sherry Welch

Sherry Welch, described as a former beauty queen, was murdered in the back room of an Amarillo furniture store she managed. The murder was described as occurring in May 1981 in one passage and as occurring on April 9, 1980 in another passage, with the consolidated timeline reflecting the dated killing described as April 9, 1980.

Police reportedly had no leads in the case, but they were still working on the Lawrence homicide, studying bloody palmprints found on the victim's furniture. The prints were matched in late summer, leading to Pinkerton’s arrest.

Investigation

Detectives followed a trail of footprints to Pinkerton's house, several blocks away. He was released for lack of evidence after brief interrogation.

Police reportedly had been studying bloody palmprints found on Lawrence’s furniture. The prints were matched in late summer, and Pinkerton was arrested on September 26 and charged with one count of first-degree murder.

Arrest

Pinkerton was arrested on September 26 and charged with one count of first-degree murder connected to Sarah Lawrence.

Trial

Sarah Lawrence trial and conviction

A trial for the Lawrence murder was moved from Amarillo to Corpus Christi because of a change of venue.

Pinkerton was convicted of the Lawrence murder eight months later and was sentenced to death on May 30, 1981. A jury of seven men and five women found Pinkerton guilty on May 30, 1981.

The conviction was described as being due to new evidence found regarding a bloody handprint found on Lawrence’s thigh that matched Pinkerton’s.

Sherry Welch trial and conviction

Indictments were returned in the Welch case on July 22, 1981.

Pinkerton was convicted and given a second life sentence for the murder of Sherry Welch in April of 1982, based on bite marks found on Mrs. Welch’s breast that matched teeth impressions of Pinkerton’s. This trial was held in El Paso.

Another part of the narrative stated that Pinkerton drew his second death sentence on May 13, 1982, after celebrating the anniversary of his first murder trial with another conviction.

Sentencing

In the Lawrence case, Pinkerton was sentenced to die on May 30, 1981 after being convicted of the murder.

In the Welch case, Pinkerton received a second life sentence in April 1982, and a second death sentence was described as having occurred on May 13, 1982.

Appeals

The narrative stated that appeals won Pinkerton three stays of execution, once coming within a half-hour of death before the Supreme Court intervened to save his life. It also stated that a federal appeals court rejected Pinkerton's bid for a fourth stay on May 14, 1986.

Three days before his scheduled execution, Judge Hayden W. Head Jr. granted Pinkerton a stay. His next date was also stayed 26 minutes before his execution was finally carried out.

Outcome

Pinkerton was executed by lethal injection on May 15, 1986 in Texas.

Last statement

Witnesses entered the execution chamber as Pinkerton spoke to his father.

"Be strong for me," Pinkerton told his father, Gene Pinkerton, as witnesses entered the execution chamber.

"I want you to know I’m at peace with myself and with my God," Pinkerton said.

He recited a prayer to Allah, the supreme being of Islam.

"I bear witness that there is no God but Allah. With your praise I ask for forgiveness and I return unto you," Pinkerton said.

"I love you, Dad."

Other details

Michael Newton was identified as an author associated with the listing “An Encyclopedia of Modern Serial Killers - Hunting Humans.” The entry included: “Pinkerton, Jay Kelly (1969-86),” “SEX: M,” “RACE: W,” “TYPE: T,” “MOTIVE: Sex./Sad.,” “DATE(S): 1969/80,” “VENUE: Amarillo, Tex.,” “VICTIMS: Two,” and “DISPOSITION: Executed May 15, 1986.”