Henryetta Resident Sentenced To Life Imprisonment For Murdering Father

MUSKOGEE, OKLAHOMA – The United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Oklahoma announced today that Diamond Levi Britt, age 27, of Henryetta, Oklahoma was sentenced to life imprisonment for being found guilty by jury trial of First-Degree Murder in Indian Country. Britt’s federal jury trial began with testimony on Tuesday, July 13, 2021, and concluded on Thursday, July 15, 2021, with the guilty verdict.

During Britt’s jury trial, the United States presented evidence that on September 16, 2019, the defendant attacked his father, Gary Britt, with a samurai sword. The victim suffered significant injuries including a partially severed arm, multiple head wounds, and a transected quadriceps tendon. The victim died nine days after the attack due to complications from his injuries.

The evidence at trial further demonstrated that Britt knowingly and deliberately killed his father, with premeditation. On at least two occasions prior to the attack the defendant informed family members he intended to kill his father. After the vicious attack, Britt left the crime scene and was observed by Henryetta police officers walking along a roadway carrying the sword. Britt was taken into custody and made numerous statements that night indicating that he wanted to kill his father and that he regularly thought about stabbing his father.  After hearing argument from the parties during the sentencing hearing, United States District Court Judge John F. Heil, III sentenced Britt to life in prison.

The United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Oklahoma prosecuted the case because the defendant is a member of a federally recognized Indian tribe and the crime occurred in Okmulgee County, within the boundaries of the Muscogee (Creek) Nation, and within the Eastern District of Oklahoma.

The case was the result of an investigation by the Okmulgee County Sheriff’s Office, the Henryetta Police Department, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation.

“A life sentence is fit punishment,” said Christopher J. Wilson, United States Attorney. “The defendant viciously murdered his father with a samurai sword. His acts were almost unthinkable, and my heart goes out to the victim’s family. Prosecuting violent crime in Indian Country like this continues to be of paramount importance to the United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Oklahoma.”

No excuse can justify the premeditated act of savagery committed by this man, who will now spend the rest of his life behind bars” said Ed Gray, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI Oklahoma City Division. “The FBI stands strongly with our tribal partners in our joint commitment to bring to justice those who engage in such brutality. Violent crimes, such as this horrendous act, will never go unchallenged.”

The Honorable John F. Heil, III, U.S. District Judge in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Oklahoma, in Muskogee, presided over the sentencing hearing. Special Assistant United States Attorneys Kyle J. Essley and Robert Reeves represented the United States. Britt was remanded to the custody of the United States Marshal to await commitment to a United States Bureau of Prisons facility to serve his non-paroleable sentence of incarceration.