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Death warrant sought for Kell

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Erin | 12:32 p.m. Nov. 17, 2008

Ugh. What a hideous person. I'm so glad we have all been feeding and housing him for the past two decades (or however long).

sad | 1:12 p.m. Nov. 17, 2008

i am shore the media, game industaries have nothing to do with crime rates going UP!

Spokane Kid | 1:14 p.m. Nov. 17, 2008

So lets get this over with and execute him. Ten people awaiting, lets just do it and save us some tax dollars and be rid of these animals.

Comments continue below

Wes | 1:25 p.m. Nov. 17, 2008

Firing Squad.

HangEmHigh | 2:18 p.m. Nov. 17, 2008

Better get him done soon because Obama wants to abolish the death penalty.

SaReN | 3:15 p.m. Nov. 17, 2008

Why should his life be spared? It should not. He has no right to live out the rest of his life when he brutally took another mans life in such a horrific way.
This man is as low as you can possibly get. He deserves the death penalty.

Skippy | 3:22 p.m. Nov. 17, 2008

Let the appeals process be completed under the law and then carry out the sentence if need be.

Legal | 3:38 p.m. Nov. 17, 2008

I have heard this guy is the most feared in the Prison......the guy is just freaking crazy.

Hey Skippy, | 3:58 p.m. Nov. 17, 2008

The only reason the Attorney General can request a death date is because the appeals process was over in Sept 2008. This is the next step in the process. The sentencing phase is also all finished and he was sentenced to death.
We should not be wasting to much more time or tax payer dollars on this waste of a human life!

SoCal Sheriff | 5:34 p.m. Nov. 17, 2008

Having worked in the prison system for much of my life, I find that the most feared are also the most scared.

Irreantum | 6:15 p.m. Nov. 17, 2008

Heavenly Father loves them...

frank | 6:34 p.m. Nov. 17, 2008

may justice be swiftly but it will probably take years!

Nut's | 6:41 p.m. Nov. 17, 2008

You would be nuts if you were in prison.
People get in prison for no reason of their own.
Once charged, You have a problem.
You are not guilty, and no one is listening.
Some of you posters are just plain ignorant.
You should try the shoes of the guy you want to execute..
You might see things differently ???
The Judicial System in Utah is Corrupt
The FBI needs to investigate The Box Elder County Judges, Courts, Prosecutors and the Lawyers
People in Box Elder County have no rights to freedom of speech in the Constitution
The system is a Threat to the People
The Judges should not be allowd in public with their hateful attitude
The Box Elder Sheriffs Department is Corrupt as well,
This is insider information

Ignorant Posters | 7:22 p.m. Nov. 17, 2008

You don't know much about costs of inmates, do you? The far more expensive way to resolve this is to kill him.

I enjoy the net-benefit analysis when deciding for or against the death penalty.

My verdict:

- the death penalty does not deter (people who would commit these crimes have some screws loose already, who else would do such things)

- the risk of killing an innocent person is incredibly costly. This almost single-handedly outweighs any benefit the death penalty encourages.

- state sanctioned death is wrong. Being consistent, if we say the government's approval of same-sex marriage makes that the new moral, we must also recognize the same argument for the death penalty. State sanctioned death gives people the impression that killing when a person is no longer a threat to society is justified. We would see far less vigilante/retributive killings if the government did not say it was okay. We make people think that killing someone is justified at times. It is not.

This man is a monster. He has absolutely lost his right to live in our society, but killing him would have net negative repercussions.

A life of hard labour is what he needs.

Re: Nut's | 7:27 p.m. Nov. 17, 2008

A conspiracy theorists, great!

You actually seem nuts. Also, I don't understand the apostrophe, is something the possession of a guy named Nut? Or is it a contraction for "nut is."

Help me out.

"This is insider information" ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha

Brian | 9:02 p.m. Nov. 17, 2008

This man is clearly guilty but I know that with the number of men previously convicted of rape that have now been found innocent because of DNA evidence I personally would be very very hesitant to send another to their death.

Conejo | 9:14 p.m. Nov. 17, 2008

1.) It costs about 30,000 to house a prisoner a year.
2.) The death penalty isn't meant to deter anything. It is meant to PUNISH. However, it does deter VERY effectively. 100% of those executed never commit another crime.
3.) State sanctioned death is wrong? Why? It is a valid punishment for a horrendous crime. How many vigilante killings have there been? Not many, so your argument that it would deter them is unfounded.

4.) As for your gay marriage argument. Way to bring something completely unrelated into the argument. The price of rice in China is just as relevant.

Anonymous | 10:18 p.m. Nov. 17, 2008

As for "nuts", anyone who has been in the "System" and accused of a crime, but truly innocent IS treated unfairly in the System PERIOD! However if the killing was caught on tape, there isn't much to argue over if he stabbed a guy that many times. Rather than pay to house him, the penalty for death should be death. It is that simple, if the murder was indeed murder and pre-meditated.

grim reaper | 2:42 p.m. Nov. 20, 2008

well, i say they get over with it. i saw that hbo documentary about him last year with his sorry excuses and he's a coward.

Zack | 2:57 p.m. Nov. 25, 2008

This man deserves death penalty.
I also notice that Troy Kell is not ordinary maniac. This man has got
something inside him.I personally regard him as specimen among
average maniacs inside.Perhaps the most notorious criminal.
I think he should get a life.

australian girl | 8:15 a.m. Dec. 1, 2008

Troy kell should not be sent to his death . i use to be a beliver in death penalty until i realised that its not the worst prisoners being sent to there death. there are serial killers in prison who have done far worst living on a life. troy kell made a foolish mistake at 18 however stuck up for himself second time round he is a product of what the jail system can do to one so young if not given the proper direction they need.i look at troy as the young 18 he was all those years ago hes made mistakes ones no doubt he wishes he could take back but lets be honest blockmon was not innocent either it just so happens he came off the worst should another man lose his life no its not going to make it any better or bring blockmon back

grim reaper | 5:39 p.m. Dec. 1, 2008

australian girl, why not just admit that you're one of his groupies sending him love letters because you feel sorry him? you prolly want him to go free so he can do five times as worse than he did on the inside or prior to him getting life. if they give him another chance, he'll kill again and again and again. he almost killed another inmate back in 2001 and who knows what else he's done since then that hasn't been reported to the outside world. he belongs where he is and folks such as yourself need to stop falling for sociopathic nutjobs like him. if you don't want him executed, fine but at least agree with me that he should be locked up in ADX prison in colorado or some sort of prison where he's never heard from or about again.

troyello | 12:34 p.m. Dec. 11, 2008

i think he deserves hard labour ,death penalty is useless and why the worst serial killers like btk killer,ramirez,RIDGEWAY are not on death row?

Y2K | 11:50 a.m. Dec. 22, 2008

Troy Kell has become the poster boy for both or 2 arguments, Race issues in prison & the DP...What we need to consider is this - IF Blackmon had got the jump on Kell & killed him, would we be hearing so much about this case? I say NO, we would not. This man was thrown into prison, w/LWOP, no hope,EVER! Now, folks can say what they will from the comfort & safety of their own homes, but takes these same ppl, put 'em away w/LWOP & you'll hear a new tune! Very few are willing to submit themselves to being raped, molested, defiled & degraded everyday for the rest of their lives & the only way to avoid it is to be "feared." & ppl don't fear ya b/c you talk a rough game, you're tested & you had better back it up. Kell did so & he has lived an additional 14 yrs since this killing. The will to live is strong, even if only for another hour. TO put this man to death when many others had a part in this crime is a crime in & of itself.

shaw | 11:27 a.m. Jan. 16, 2009

i am not a fan let alone a groupie. he use 2 b a good man, i'm sorry.

Gandor | 6:18 a.m. Jan. 21, 2009

Do you know what prison is ? Do you know Troy ? Do you like people judge you without knowing you ? Have you ever try to walk in Troy kell shoes ? Did you know what really happened between Troy & Lonnie before the murder ? Do you imagine come into prison at 18' and never expect a future ? Troy made some choices, bad or good for him, and it is his story. Who are you to judge, to expect the death for him ? Would you accept we would wish the same for you ? According to me, the harder punition is spending all your life deprived of all ! In solitary confinment 23/24 hours, and he pay the piper since 22 years, and much more since 14 in DR !

TMK | 5:34 p.m. Jan. 22, 2009

Let them talk Troy, we love you.
You now beter, people are stupid think the now everthing

mike | 11:52 a.m. Jan. 24, 2009

I believe that the law has been applied correctly in this case, it was premeditated and the law provides for that. Having been a white guy in jail I can easily see what led to this. I assume Blackmon was a loudmouth who pushed the wrong man too hard. This does not excuse the viciousness of the attack just gives my opinion, having been involved in similar situations. No winners here.

Kris | 9:53 a.m. Jan. 29, 2009

Hey TMK if you going to come here and defend troy---Then just maybe you could make him look a little better if you brushed up on your english....(just maybe).......and I quote....

"You now beter, people are stupid think the now everthing"

Know you now what i'm talking about....lol

TO GRIM REAPER | 5:07 p.m. Jan. 31, 2009

HELLO THERE I AM ABIT TAKEN ABACK BY YOUR NEGATIVITY AND YOUR PERSONAL JUDGEMENT ON ME FOR HAVING MY OPINION. I AM NOT A GROUPIE OF TROYS AND I HAVE NEVER WRITTEN HIM A LETTER. HOWEVER I KNOW PURE EVIL WHEN I SEE IT AND TROY KELL IS SIMPLY NOT. HE IS A GOOD MAN WHO HAS DONE SOME BAD THINGS THERE IS A DIFFERANCE YOU NEED TO GET OF YOUR HIGH HORSE AND ACTUALLY SEE THE MAN BEHIND THE CRIMES INSTEAD OF THE CRIMES ITSELF. NONE OF US ARE PERFECT INCLUDING YOU I HAVE NEVER SPOKEN TO HIM OR WRITTEN HIM ALETTER BUT I WILL FIGHT FOR HIM UNTIL THERE IS NO FIGHT LEFT . LET ME ASK YOU THIS GRIM REAPER IF THIS MAN WAS YOUR SON BROTHER FATHER UNCLE GRANDFATHER AND SO ON WOULD YOU STILL BE SO KEEN TO SHOOT YOUR MOUTH OF I SUSPECT NOT . FROM AUSTRALIAN GIRL

OMG | 11:58 a.m. Feb. 11, 2009

I agree in the death penalty 100% eye for an eye tooth for a tooth...yes, it is true none of us know kell and prob should not judge him...however, do you remember what landed troy in prison, in the 1st place? shooting a man 6 times in the face (A BIT OF OVERKILL DON'T YA THINK)...how many lifes did troy take in prison before lonnies that we are unaware of? 67 stab wounds is a bit much...and if troy is so great, why did he boast to the guards that he was gonna win an oscar for his performance during the DP trial? And to Aus Girl, what if troy killed your dad, bro, uncle, grandad or friend? Suspect you would not feel the same way about him right?

TO OMG | 4:29 p.m. Feb. 18, 2009

I WOULD AGREE IN THE DEATH PENALTY IF IT WAS THE WORST KILLERS GETTING IT HOWEVER ITS NOT. AS I SAID IN MY FIRST EVER COMMENT THERE ARE ALOT OF PRISONERS WHO ARE SERIAL KILLERS WHO ARE LIVING ON A LIFE. TROY HIMSELF ADMITS HE WENT OVERBOARD HOWEVER LETS NOT FORGET HE WAS OFFERED A LIGHTER SENTENCED AND HIS COURT APPOINTED LAWYER TURNED IT DOWN.RUINING HIS LIFE FOR EVER WITH NO CHANCE AT ALL FOR A FUTURE AT 18. YES WHAT HE DID TO LONNIE WAS VILE I HAVE NEVER SAID IT WASNT BUT THE INCIDENT IS MUCH BIGGER THEN TROY AND ERIC THERE ARE ALOT MORE PEOPLE INVOLVED AND THEY SHOULD NEVER HAVE BEEN PUT IN THAT SCENE IN THE FIRST PLACE THERE FOR TO SEND 1 MAN TO HIS DEATH FOR IT IS SIMPLY WRONG. YOU ASK A VERY INTELLIGENT QUESTION MY BROTHER FATHER AND SO ON DO NOT WALK AROUND ASKING UNDERAGE GIRLS TO POSE NUDE AND THEY HAVE NEVER BEEN TO JAIL SO I CAN NOT ANSWER YOUR QUESTION FAIRLY AUSTRALIAN GIRL

xgirl | 11:02 a.m. Feb. 19, 2009

Unless you had to walk and live a day in his shoes u cant judge him for what he did while he was in prison, people get stabbed up and murdered everyday in prison.. Personally i think it is a crime to sentence a 18yr old to life with no parole no matter what the crime is. My heart goes out to Troy Kell, the whole thing is really tragic..Troy I pray 4 u and support you..

girlchris | 1:36 a.m. March 10, 2009

i grew up in vegas and lived down the street from Troy. we used to call him Mike. we lived and went to school with ALOT of black people. troy was not prejudice then and i don't believe he is now either. utah is a very "white" state. their prisons are no different. stabbings are a daily in prisons. the difference is that they usually get broke up. the guards should have done just that. perhaps they didn't intervene for a reason...hmm, it happens. troy has made a series of really bad choices. starting with that night in vegas back in '86 (i'm so glad for sandy shaw to have finally been releasd) and then choosing to take that case to trial. i try to imagine how i would feel about him if i didn't know him. i'm biased i'm sure. i know he's not an evil person. we are not him, we don't know what he feels. i'm just really sad about all of it.

southsidesara | 9:56 a.m. March 18, 2009

well i would like for him to get to know god... he was just a kid when they closed the doors in on him and he didnt know better... i dont blame him for anything.. and i dont believe sandy is innocent either thats why she did time too... if i was in his shoes i would most likely do the same thing.. in prison its kill or be killed...remember that and noone is perfect. and im dating one of his family members so i know what the kell name means and how they act...

just comments ... | 11:46 a.m. March 20, 2009

ok, so a few kinda no dude? well he killled... crime n punishments go hand n hand. he chooses 2 walk that road i believe. he planed n orchestrated crimes both along w/ weak minded individuals who needed acceptance. he apparently couldn't do these things alone, physically he couldn't,whether he had weapons,or just manipulated others. sandy the same, incarcerated she had others harrass n violate while she avoided detection y? both r the same manipulating criminals,unable 2 carry out sickened crimes. no, troy got n w arians, 4 fear, sandy fell n w african americans outah acceptance/fear as a need of protection.

just comments | 12:27 p.m. March 20, 2009

i happened 2 come upon this info n had 2 comment. all individuals were confined n r still confined today. bad choices ppl say, n yes they made that choice,to commit acts of violence upon others less than themselves kell couldn't commit crimes alone as shaw couldn't act on her own while confined herself. the arians protected kell n earlier yrs. n shaw found african americans as protection. merritt basically shouldn't have bin released. shaw had manipulated friends into physically abusing others while standing by. crime n punishments go hand n hand. shaw may have bin released sure but karma will come knocking.

Ray | 6:12 p.m. March 26, 2009

I do not believe in the death penality for anyone! I had an Uncle murdered and his own parents didn't want death to the killer. The old saying: 2 wrongs don't make it Right! The killer is wrong, and if we play GOD and kill him then we are killers too! Let GOD issue punishment on Judgement day. Life is as far as man needs to punish, God will do the rest. As for Troy Michael Kell he did a bad thing at 18, but so did the others involved. Young people should not be placed with older hardened criminals. They should be evaluated and helped if at all possible. Every person in prison has a family: father, Mother, brother, sister,etc., most of these families love this criminalno matter what so we each need to place ourselves in that situation. As for the TAX and MONEY issue, that is one reason we are being punished by GOD right now, as a whole We LOVE MONEY more than our fellow man/woman! Money is the ROOT of all EVIL! We also send far more TAX money to Forein nations than we use to help a TROY Kell!

No one's perfect | 6:50 p.m. March 26, 2009

Laughing my head off at all the "no one's perfect" arguments being made, as though vicious premeditated murder is equivalent to picking your nose in public. I can just see Jim Carrey playing him in the comedy movie: "Wow - I lost count. Did I really stab you 67 times? I really got carried away, but hey - NO ONE'S PERFECT!"

Couldn't we have just given him a ticket? I mean, honestly, I know murder is worse than 5 miles over the speed limit, but maybe equivalent to 20 over, right? C'mon let the poor, oversentenced schmuck out for crying out loud! I'm sure he's really nice, even if he occasionally murders someone. Good grief - NO ONE'S PERFECT!

Judgemental | 7:11 p.m. March 26, 2009

What right do we have to judge this man?

4 crying out loud... | 8:08 a.m. April 15, 2009

I agree completely with NO ONE IS PERFECT! I have friends that have been in Utah State Prison w/ Troy...he is one feared indiviual. I am sure he has been involved in many stabbings before the incident in 1994. All of the people that feel sorry for Troy, because he was imprisoned at 18 make me want to puke. HE KILLED ANOTHER MAN...he put himself in prison, the system didn't. He shot another man in the face 6 times, then robbed him. The next murder he was involved with, was stabbed 67 times. I mean come on now, what should the system do with a person like him. He was involved in beating a Muslim prisoner 9 years ago...I am sure he was a great kid...but his poor choices put him where he is today.

Anonymous | 4:43 p.m. June 8, 2009

Does anyone even KNOW what Gladiator Days was documented for? Gladiator Days is THE name given for the years of CO's putting the inmates up to this! That is what the doc was meant to be about. IT IS NOT RIGHT OR JUST TO PUT A MAN TO DEATH FOR DEFENDING HIMSELF IN A PRISON. PERIOD! NOW "Who" should be the ones on death row with him? Every single CO that took them all to medical and every CO that stood there watching this go on,laughing at that! Believe me, Troy definately thought he was doing exactly what they wanted him to do. He also had no choice, or it would have been him laying dead on that floor another day if he hadn't! WHAT ARE YOU PEOPLE NOT UNDERSTANDING ABOUT HOW YOU HAVE TO SURVIVE IN THE PRISON SYSTEMS? The ONLY reason Troy (Michael)is still alive after 22.5 years is because he's had to do what he's done. PERIOD! It isn't a game in there.IT'S YOUR LIFE OR YOUR DEATH! The doc shows 5 min. and it was over 45 min. before SWAT entered!

Anonymous | 4:58 p.m. June 8, 2009

The Muslim was asked by the officer on duty, to take Troy Kell an ice bucket, the officer on duty opened Kells cell door with a push of a button, enough for him to squeeze out. Next, an officer yelled out loud "GET YOUR SHOES ON"! that means to FIGHT. And all inmates know this. But MOST of you dont know this, because you haven't searched court docs for the truth. They are public access. Troy (Michael) is one of the best men there are in this world. And he is still the same man as the boy he was. If anyone ever needed help back then, they knew who to ask, and that was Michael (Troy). He never was the type to stand by and watch anyone be a victim, and unfortunately, it's the reason for his first conviction that handed him a LWOP. HAVE ANY OF YOU EVER BLACKED OUT AND LOST CONTROL OF YOUR ACTIONS? It happens. He should have never got LWOP for the first one, his brain wasnt even fully developed, he deserved a chance at some point in his life, as Sandy has gotten.

averagejane | 3:28 p.m. June 15, 2009

FINALLY! Someone made a point to mention, to ask if anyone realized what the documentary was actually ABOUT! I wonder if Marc Levin himself didn't get caught up in the story of the murder of Blackmon and this caused him to fall short of the actual point of the doc. I think if the truth be known (and maybe there is another reason Levin failed to drive home the point) there were many others involved the day Blackmon was stabbed so brutally ON CAMERA! This had been a long time coming according to court docs, there were guards involved in major ways...it was an orchestrated event. There is a REASON that it took SWAT so long to get inside and get medical attention for Blackmon. Blackmon was an apparent bully who used his race in power plays over every little thing within his pod. There is a reason that Kell and Daniels were summoned to med via intercom and Blackmon was physically retrieved by a guard. This did not allow for Blackmon to prepare for fight. Kell put himself in prison, but the officials involved put him on DR.Guards wanted rid of Blackmon!

once again... | 2:04 p.m. June 16, 2009

you can say whatever you want but 1st degree murder does not equal self defense. the judge agreed, the court agreed, the jury agreed, hell even the murderers agreed. you just don't plan a murder and then say that you were doing it in self defense. that's why the whole "lonnie blackmon was going to kill him so he defended himself" argument falls apart. was there any moment in the film that lonnie blackmon attacked anybody? in fact, he was handcuffed from the waist down and attacked by kell who managed to slip out his handcuffs with a makeshift key during the attack. held down by eric daniels and paul payne and murdered. and kell's whole rant afterwards just let's you know that it damn sure wasn't self defense. you guys can argue and defend him but he's still going to have to meet the executioner regardless.

Anonymous | 4:17 p.m. June 16, 2009

DEAR once again... you're just another one who's been left in total disarray the exact way that the documentary and the prosecution and prison emplyee side has wanted all of you out here living to be in. There isn't even half of Troy's interview on that documentary, none of what is on the documentary is telling the entire truth, and none of it takes away WHAT goes on in the prisons and has been for years and have been labeled Gladiator Days. The only words used in the doc are the ones cut and put together to make everything look and sound the way the prosecution AND movie maker wants it. EVERY COURT TRIAL IS ALL ABOUT WHO CAN CON THE JURY, LIES LIES LIES. TRIALS ARE NOT ABOUT THE TRUTH. FACT REMAINS, NO MAN SHOULD BE PUT TO DEATH FOR A PRISON INMATE ON INMATE KILLING. BUT UTAH, THEY THINK THEY CAN DO WHAT THEY WANT. BIGGOTS, RACISTS THEMSELVES AND WANT TO SIT BACK AND ACT LIKE TROY IS SOOOO BAD FOR BEING WHAT THEY ARE INSIDE THEIR HOMES THEMSELVES.

once again | 2:58 p.m. June 19, 2009

anonymous, lol. you are confused. if the doc doesn't say anything, then the court papers do. he's guilty as charge and belongs where he is. you need to seek help. we're talking about somebody who already killed before and is irredeemable. while serving time for his first murder in nevada, he assaulted staff and inmates. that led to him being shipped to utah because he was unmanageable in the nevada department of corrections. he is pure sociopathic. the fact that he actually has a fan club of people believing his lies including yourself who are minimizing his brutality for normal human behavior shows how truly dangerous he is. ya don't wanna listen to me though.

L | 7:30 p.m. June 20, 2009

I wouls suggest to anyone that believes thatt Troy Kell received due process drive by the gunnison facility take a look at where they held a capital murder trial, where they pasted a death sentence and who sat in the jury box.
Thescales are blind because what happens in our courts is not about moral judgements and personalities it should be about the constitution. If the discusion is about moral concience then drive by that prison and if you believe as an american that our courts did their job, sleep well you have a clean conciense.

Anonymous | 10:44 a.m. June 29, 2009

ONCE AGAIN, I'm not confused about anything. Apparently you are. You aren't picking up on what my post are about. The court papers SHOW that only Troy was held accountable for his GLADIATOR Days Ways, not the ones who put him and many others across this country up to it. At what point is that going to be acknowledged and stopped? So that others don't become a Troy Kell. Troy may very well have sociopathic personalities now, he's learned it and lived it inside of the prison systems. The only Born Sociopath was Sandy Shaw in the first murder. It's simply amazing just what some attention starved little girls can come up with to get a boy to do. The boys can't think past the horrific tale they're being told to have any sense to thought in the middle of it all. It's a proven fact that boys can't think past more than one subject at a time. If he had never known Sandy Shaw, he would have never been involved in something like this ever after.

Anonymous | 9:20 a.m. Oct. 6, 2009

Once again is correct. You are standing up for a person who is a sociopath. Troy did not need to shoot Cotton Kelly in the face 6 times. He could have told Sandy that he did not want to be a part of her shenanigans, he had a choice and he clearly made it. How do you know what Troy would have been a part of if he would not have known Sandy? You are speaking for Troy, instead of on his behalf. I think you are just buying Troy's propaganda, that his fan club seems to try force down peoples throats. I understand the kill or be killed prison politics. However, what do you expect the law to do with people like Troy Kell, who have been charged twice for murder?

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