Bio

Dorsie Leslie Jones Jr., also known as “Wayne” or “D.L. Jones Jr.,” was born on November 6, 1939. He later lived in Lawton, Oklahoma, where he worked as a carpenter. Before the shooting, Jones had no major documented violent criminal record. During later court proceedings, his defense presented evidence that he was married, had four children, and had previously been diagnosed as a latent schizophrenic. His attorneys also argued that he was under stress at the time of the offense and had taken prescription medication along with alcohol on the day of the shooting.

Jones claimed he could not remember the shootings because of the combined effects of alcohol and the prescribed drug Ativan. His defense argued that this combination left him unconscious of his actions or temporarily insane. Prosecutors rejected that explanation, and witnesses said Jones did not appear drunk or out of control during the incident.

Murder Story

On March 14, 1979, Dorsie Leslie Jones Jr. was drinking beer at the Wichita Lounge in Lawton, Oklahoma, with Betty Jean Strain, a woman he had met earlier that day. While inside the bar, the barmaid noticed a pistol sticking out from Jones’s boot and asked him to cover it with his pant leg. Jones responded by threatening to shoot her in the head.

Seconds later, Jones pulled the gun and pointed it toward the barmaid. She ducked and crawled behind the bar to hide. Jones fired, but the bullet struck Betty Strain instead. Strain was wounded under the right breast and managed to flee to another nearby bar for help. Her injuries later required the removal of her spleen.

Jones then turned toward Stanley Eugene Buck Sr. and his 19-year-old son, Stanley Eugene Buck Jr., who were playing pool and eating inside the bar. Jones asked them what they were doing. After they said they were playing pool, Jones opened fire. He shot Stanley Buck Jr., then shot Stanley Buck Sr. twice in the head at point-blank range. Stanley Buck Sr. died from the gunshot wounds.

Jones also shot Stanley Buck Jr. again. Buck Jr. survived but was left partially paralyzed from his injuries. He later managed to get to a nearby fruit stand and signal for help because he could not speak due to his wounds. Lawton police arrested Jones at his home shortly after the shooting. The pistol was found in his pickup truck.

At trial, Jones argued that he had taken Ativan and consumed alcohol before the shootings, leaving him unable to understand or remember his actions. The jury rejected his insanity defense. On April 12, 1980, he was convicted of first-degree murder and two counts of assault and battery with a deadly weapon. He received the death penalty for the murder of Stanley Buck Sr., a 20-year sentence for shooting Stanley Buck Jr., and a 12-year sentence for shooting Betty Strain.

Jones remained on Oklahoma’s death row for more than 20 years, longer than any other inmate on the state’s death row at the time. His appeals challenged the aggravating circumstances, his insanity defense, jury instructions, and claims involving constitutional rights, but his conviction and sentence were upheld.

The Oklahoma Pardon and Parole Board denied clemency on January 23, 2001, by a 3-2 vote. On February 1, 2001, Jones was executed by lethal injection at the Oklahoma State Penitentiary in McAlester. He was pronounced dead at 9:16 p.m.