Prosecuting Attorney announces Fulton man will not face death penalty in Murder Case
Prosecuting Attorney Ben Hale of the Eighth North Judicial District of Arkansas announced 47 year-old Bruce Lee Cockrell Jr will not face the death penalty after setting his wife on fire in July.
Cockrell has been charged with arson and capital murder after allegedly pouring gasoline on his wife and setting her on fire on July 8th. He is also being tried as a habitual offender. Cockrell will face life in prison without the possibility of parole if convicted of the capital murder in the death of Tonya Cockrell.
Tonya Cockrell allegedly informed medical personnel at a Texarkana hospital that Bruce Cockrell hit her and punched her while telling her “how ugly she was,” before dousing her with gas and lighting her on fire. She died the next day on July 9th in the burn unit of the Arkansas Children’s Hospital in Little Rock.
Bruce Cockrell initially told investigators that he and Tonya were in bed when an electrical fire broke out in the bedroom, and she was burned. According to the affidavit, Bruce Cockrell suffered no burns or injuries.
