Death Penalty Vacated for King

Mack Arthur King

LOWNDES COUNTY, Miss. (WCBI)-Convicted murder Mack Arthur King no longer faces the death penalty.

As of Tuesday King’s death penalty has been officially vacated by U.S. District Judge Sharion Aycock.

King had appealed his 2008 death sentence for a Lowndes County murder on numerous grounds, including mental retardation.

Last week, the state of Mississippi agreed with a psychological evaluation stating King is mentally retarded.

King was convicted of the 1980 beating, strangling, and drowning death of 84 year-old Lela Patterson during a burglary of her home.

The state has 60 days to impose a sentence of less than death.