Oklahoma court orders new sentence in Australian’s killing

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) – An Oklahoma appeals court has thrown out the life sentence given to a teenager who was convicted of fatally shooting an Australian baseball player three years ago.

Chancey Luna was tried as an adult in the killing of 22-year-old Christopher Lane, who was shot while jogging along a road in southwestern Oklahoma. Luna, who was 16 at the time of the shooting, was convicted of first-degree murder and sentenced to life in prison without parole.

In a court filing, Luna’s attorney argued that life-without-parole was an unconstitutional sentence for a juvenile, and the Oklahoma Court of Criminal Appeals agreed.

The panel upheld Luna’s conviction and ordered a resentencing.

Lane was a native of Melbourne, Australia, and was about to start his senior year at East Central University in Ada.