Justice approaches for Karen Lane, a Walker County resident murdered in 1988.
After more than three decades, the Alabama Supreme Court has granted an order of execution for Greg Hunt, the man who brutalized and murdered Lane in her Cordova apartment.
Hunt, who was convicted of Lane’s murder in 1991, has exhausted the appeals process, and the date of his execution will be scheduled in the next 30 days.
At the time of sentencing, Hunt’s was the first death penalty handed down in Walker County in nearly 50 years. District Attorney Bill Adair, who prosecuted the case as an Assistant D.A., said,
“This has been a long journey for everyone involved. We recognize the pain that the victim’s family has carried for decades. While no sentence can erase the loss, we hope this step brings a measure of closure.”
The case was investigated by several prominent members of law-enforcement, including investigators JC Poe and Frank Cole. Poe, an experienced crime scene investigator, brought his expertise to the complex and gruesome crime scene, providing key information and findings that were integral to the ultimate outcome of the case. Cole, an investigator with the Walker County DA’s office, was primarily responsible for tracking down and communicating with witnesses. When asked about his memory of the investigation, Cole said, “The investigators at the time made a good team.”
Lane’s tragic loss and the heinous nature of the crime weighed heavily on her family and friends. On the impact of the loss, Adair said,
“Before his death, I spoke to Karen’s father many times about the slow pace of justice. I was a young prosecutor when I tried this case, but now that I’m a little older and have daughters of my own, I understand the grief and anger that Karen’s father felt when he found his daughter staged in a way no one should ever have to witness, especially a father.”
The question of the protracted nature of justice was one that Cole ruminated on as well, saying that he was pleased to see justice upheld for Lane and her family, but he regrets that Lane’s parents, Mr. and Mrs. Sanders, did not live to see final justice served.
This case would have been extraordinarily difficult to solve without the courage and cooperation of witnesses who came forward. Their willingness to speak up was instrumental in ensuring accountability and upholding the rule of law. The justice system moves slowly, but deliberately, to ensure fairness and due process. After years of careful review, the sentence handed down in 1988 is now set to be carried out.
Further updates will be provided when the official execution date is confirmed.
