BURLINGTON, Vt. (AP) - A man facing a federal death penalty retrial in the killing of a Vermont supermarket worker 15 years ago has been accused in a lawsuit of stabbing another death row inmate in 2012.
Donald Fell was convicted and sentenced to death a decade ago for the killing of Terry King. A judge ordered a new trial last year after it was revealed a juror had investigated the case on his own.
Fell was shackled in court in the latest pretrial proceeding because of an unspecified incident on death row in 2012, according to court records.
The Burlington Free Press (https://bfpne.ws/1fEwUT4) reported Thursday that Fell has been accused in a lawsuit of attacking James H. Roane Jr., 49, in 2012 at a federal prison in Terre Haute, Indiana. Fell was a “student” of the white supremacist group Aryan Brotherhood who had ordered a “hit” on Roane, the newspaper reported.
Fell was not charged in the alleged attack. Lawyers for the 35-year-old Fell couldn’t be reached for comment Thursday.
Roane’s lawsuit accuses prison officials of failing to protect him or to thoroughly investigate the attack. Roane said Fell stabbed him in the face and upper body and continued after prison officials ordered him to stop.
The lawsuit said Roane suffered a laceration on the side of his neck, a swelling of clotted blood inside his neck and a hand fracture and had to have part of his thyroid removed. He underwent surgery and spent nearly three weeks in the hospital, including time in intensive care, the lawsuit said.
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Information from: The Burlington Free Press, https://www.burlingtonfreepress.com
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