TDOC
Cone
Convicted murderer Gary Cone died Tuesday of natural causes, according to the Tennessee Department of Corrections (TDOC).
Cone confessed to killing an elderly couple in their Memphis home in 1980. He was convicted of armed robbery, assault with intent to murder, and two counts of first degree murder. He was sentenced to death in Shelby County in 1982.
Cone died Tuesday morning at age 67 in a Nashville hospital of natural causes, said the TDOC.
During his trial, Cone’s attorneys said that during his two-day crime spree in 1980, he’d been in an amphetamine psychosis. It was the only defense of the crimes they offered.
Cone’s case went all the way to U.S. Supreme Court as it was alleged prosecutors in the case withheld evidence. A key witness statement – one that corroborated Cone’s story the he was under the influence of drugs – was withheld by prosecutors. The court ordered Cone’s case vacated and remanded.
