Plea bargain for killer leaves parole in distant future

Kevin Devon Sutton has spent more than two years behind bars battling charges that he murdered a 17-year-old man in a love triangle dispute in 1996.

He reluctantly pleaded guilty in February to murder charges and was sentenced Thursday to the life prison term that was part of the plea bargain.

Sutton, now 20, was visibly unhappy Thursday with the prospect of serving another 37 years behind bars before he would be eligible for parole.

Sutton fumed as the mother of Tyrell Nolen displayed a picture of the slain teenager and told the judge her family has been devastated by the October 1996 incident.

As family members and friends wept in the back of the courtroom, Mary Nolen bitterly asked District Judge Michael Douglas to give Sutton "everything he deserves."

Sutton defiantly refused to speak at the hearing.

His attorney, Stan Walton, lamented the consequences "when kids have access to guns."

As Sutton was escorted from the courtroom, Nolen's family sarcastically waved goodbye.

Nolen was shot multiple times with a handgun by Sutton after he was beaten by two other men who took Sutton's side in the domestic dispute. The two other men told police what happened and Sutton later admitted his involvement, according to sources close to the case.

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