Nevada County Picayune and Gurdon Times Newspaper Archive

Atkinson Is Denied Release

A convicted murderer will remain in prison, serving out his full sentence.

Earl Atkinson, 46, of Rosston, is serving a life sentence in the Arkansas state penitentiary for the murder of Nevada County Sheriff Deputy R.D. Purifoy on Nov. 12, 1992.

Atkinson had sought to get his sentence reduced and commuted by Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee, but was recently turned down.

According to court records, Atkinson beat Purifoy to death with a flat iron.

Records state the NCSO received a disturbance call at the Atkinson residence around 5:30 p.m. on Nov. 12, 1992. Purifoy was dispatched to the scene.

At about 6 p.m., a second call came in to the NCSO stating a deputy was down.

Former Nevada County Sheriff Abb Morman arrived on the scene at approximately 6:30 p.m., finding Purifoy's beaten body.

When Morman arrived, Atkinson reportedly came out of the house with a hand behind his back. He was ordered to slowly remove the hand and drop what was in it.

Instead, Atkinson showed officers he had a gun in the hand, turned and went back inside.

Morman fired three times at the suspect, who fired five shots in return.

However, Atkinson was wounded in the shootout and eventually convinced to give up.

He was taken to the defunct Nevada County Hospital for treatment, then transferred to the Nevada County Jail, where he was charged with capital felony murder.

While in custody, Atkinson reportedly bragged about killing deputy Purifoy, saying he told Purifoy to stay off his land or he would kill him.

According to the case file, Atkinson was represented by Gene Hale, who was appointed as his public defender.

Atkinson underwent psychological evaluation, where it was learned his overall IQ was 68, but could be higher if he was on his medication. The doctor, Paul Deyoub, Ph.D., a clinical psychologist, reported Atkinson being a paranoid schizophrenic and mildly retarded.

However, the psychological evaluation also revealed Atkinson to read at the 11th grade level and have a good understanding of the legal system.

The report stated Atkinson knew what he was doing at the time he murdered Purifoy.

Atkinson made a statement claiming Purifoy struck him with a heavy flashlight and stole about $8,000 in cash from him.

He claimed his response was self defense. He also said he surrendered to protect his mother, who was in the house at the time.

Hale notified the court of his intent to use mental illness or defect as a defense.

However, before the case went to trial, Atkinson entered a plea of guilty to the charge. Had the case gone to trial, the state was seeking the death penalty.

Instead, Atkinson was sentenced to life in prison without the opportunity of parole.

On March 17, 1999, Atkinson applied for a commutation of the sentence, and sought to get his sentence reduced by petition again on May 10, 1999.

Eighth Judicial District Judge Jim Gunter wrote to the parole board stating he opposed any reduction in Atkinson's sentence.

A release from the governor's office on Friday, July 30, stated Gov. Huckabee denied commuting Atkinson's sentence.

Had the sentence been commuted, Atkinson would eventually have been eligible for parole.

FATAL ACCIDENT - - A one-vehicle accident injured one and left one dead Thursday, July 29. According to Arkansas State Police Trooper Keith Sullivan, the accident occurred around 10:45 a.m. when the motor home, driven by Joyce Wofford, 71, or Weatherford, Texas, drove off the north side of Interstate 30. Wofford overcorrected and lost control of the vehicle, Sullivan said, causing the motor home to strike a guard rail and flip over. Glenneth Lock, 58, of Forth Worth, Texas, was partially ejected and pronounced dead at the scene. Wofford was transported to Medical Park Hospital for treatment of her injuries. No citations were issued.