INDIANAPOLIS — As convicted killer Jeffrey Weisheit faces execution for the murders of two young children, his attempt to avoid a death sentence has gained an unexpected supporter: the father of the children.
Weisheit is scheduled to be executed by lethal injection before sunrise on Nov. 5 for killing his former fiancée’s children in 2010.
Investigators stated that Weisheit duct-taped 5-year-old Caleb Lynch inside their Vanderburgh County home and ignited road flares in the boy’s underwear, causing a fire that consumed the residence. Caleb died in the blaze along with his 8-year-old sister, Alyssa Lynch, who was also inside the home.
In a sworn affidavit supporting Weisheit’s petition for clemency, Steven Lynch, the father of Alyssa and Caleb, asked Gov. Mike Braun to commute Weisheit’s sentence to life imprisonment without the possibility of parole.
“What good does it do the memory of my children to put this man to death?” Steven Lynch wrote. “With the remaining years of his life, he would be able to continue seeking the Lord’s forgiveness.”
The affidavit concluded with a direct message: “Jeffrey, I forgive you.”
Weisheit’s current attorney, Joe Perkovich, argued that severe brain damage and mental illness were not adequately examined during the original murder trial or subsequent legal proceedings. Weisheit has asked the Indiana Supreme Court for a 14-day execution stay to permit brain scans intended to clarify his mental condition at the time of the killings.
Gov. Braun indicated he would review the brain scans if they are completed.
“We’d want it so we can take it under consideration,” Braun said Tuesday. “And then the legal team representing the state would look at that and advise me accordingly.”
Perkovich told Indiana’s I-Team that Steven Lynch initially communicated his views to the Indiana Attorney General’s Office before proactively offering his backing for clemency. The children’s mother declined to submit a similar affidavit.
“From the depths of unfathomable grief, Alyssa and Caleb Lynch’s father has summoned mercy,” Perkovich said in a statement. “But it must be underscored that he simply speaks for himself, and in no way purports to speak for all the children’s family bereaved in this unspeakable tragedy.”
Indiana’s I-Team attempted to contact the children’s mother but has not received a response.
Weisheit faces two upcoming clemency hearings. The first is scheduled to happen Oct. 16 inside the Indiana State Prison, followed by a public hearing on Oct. 19 inside the Indiana Government Center in Indianapolis.
Gov. Braun did not grant clemency to Benjamin Ritchie or Roy Lee Ward prior to their executions last year.
“I would like more time for Jeffrey to live,” Steven Lynch wrote. “He knows in his heart what he did. What I want is to extend an act of mercy.”
Steven Lynch’s affadavit in support of clemency
Steven Lynch’s affadavit in support of clemency
