Norton v. State

PIVARNIK, Justice.

Defendant-appellant Donald K. Norton was charged in Parke Circuit Court with two counts of first degree murder. The charging instrument alleged that Norton was an accessory before the fact of two murders for hire under Ind. Code §§ 35-1-29-1 and 35-13-4-l(b)(6)(ii) (Burns 1975). These charges arose out of the stabbing deaths of Norton’s wife and four year old son on January 9, 1976. After a change of venue to the Benton Circuit Court, appellant Norton was tried to a jury and convicted on both counts. The trial court sentenced appellant to die by electrocution.

Appellant…