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I know what it’s like to lose a son and all the pain that comes with it. However, Sallie Ruth Newton of Cherokee County knows what it’s like to lose a son because of cold-blooded murder.
Newton’s story has been covered extensively over the years by the Cherokee Scout. Her son, John Newton, was stabbed twice and shot in the head on Nov. 2, 2011. Two days later, his dead body was found “torched” and wrapped in plastic near the Valley River. Six years later, justice finally arrived.
On Oct. 2, 2017, Corey Luther pleaded guilty to one felony count of second-degree murder, one felony count of safecracking and one felony count of common law robbery in the death of John Newton. He was sentenced to serve more than 13 years in prison, a light term behind bars for such a violent crime.
“During a police interview, Mr. Luther went out and smoked a cigarette, came back to the interview room and admitted that he had killed the victim,” assistant district attorney Eric Bellas said at the time. Such a nonchalant attitude toward taking someone’s life can’t help but bring shivers down your spine.
In the years since then, Sallie Ruth Newton has done her best to move on. Then she received a letter from the N.C. Correctional Institute saying Luther would be released from prison on May 4. He was, and now the awful memories from 14 years ago have crept back into the forefront of her mind.
“How is this fair?” she asked me last month. I didn’t have a good answer; all I could tell her is, “It’s not.”
Newton wrote about her displeasure with the criminal justice system’s handling of her son’s case in the May 7 edition of the Scout. The family had a victim’s advocate, but she disappeared. They didn’t want to plea bargain the case, yet that’s exactly what the District Attorney’s Office did. Meetings were set with officials who never bothered to show up. She still suffers from depression and other related health issues.
While Luther can now live the rest of his life as a free man, Newton’s son is still dead. That can’t be easy to accept.
The state’s letter made things even worse by spending nearly two full pages telling “sir/ma’am” to create a “safety plan” if you fear possible retribution. “You will be prepared!” the letter says, with the one word clearly in bold to make sure it’s not missed.
Good Lord, if any person has to fear retribution from a former inmate, then the person they fear shouldn’t be released from prison in the first place.
The state’s letter goes on to offer suggestions, like to make your home as secure as possible, keep weapons out of immediate sight and place a telephone in a room that can be locked from the inside and with means of escape, like a window. Remember to dial 9-1-1, come up with some escape paths with other members of your family and vary your routines.
“If the offender has entered the home,” the letter says. “Stay out of the kitchen or other areas where there is a large availability of objects that can be used as weapons. Try not to get backed into a small room or closet.”
Instructions that specific are usually based on someone’s personal situation, making the experience of the victim’s family all the more harrowing.
Sallie Ruth Newton was also told to get an unlisted telephone number, keep her keys in an easily accessible location and keep her vehicle doors locked, even when driving or parked in the garage. She was told to share a photo of the offender with neighbors, co-workers, friends, schools and day-care centers. “Rehearse the safety plan” the letter says, again in bold for emphasis.
After all that, if I didn’t fear possible retribution, I think I would now.
Hopefully, that’s not the case. If Luther is smart, he knows he’s getting a second chance at life and will take full advantage of it. He, too, has a loving family, and with their help we pray he gets on, and stays on, the right path.
Unfortunately, Sallie Ruth Newton’s prayers will never be answered. Because all she wants is to just have her son back.
David Brown is publisher of the Cherokee Scout. Call him with comments and questions at 828-837-5122 or email dbrown@cherokeescout.com.