The drunken rage that drove Marco Lee to gun down officer Ken Jordan two years ago may have spared him a date with the executioner.

Lee will spend the rest of his life in prison without the possibility of parole after pleading guilty Friday to murdering Jordan during a drunken-driving traffic stop on Fountain Boulevard. The sentence came as part of a controversial deal with prosecutors that drew fire from Jordan's family during a two-hour hearing in the 4th Judicial District courtroom of Judge David Miller.

Prosecutor Diana May told Miller that prosecutors agreed to drop the death penalty, in part because tests after the shooting showed the amount of alcohol in his blood was three times the legal limit of .08 percent for driving in Colorado. Defense attorneys would have used that in court to prove he was too drunk to intentionally kill Jordan - diminishing chances that a jury would have sentenced Lee to death.

Lee smiled after Miller told him that he would die behind bars. It was the only emotion he showed during the hearing at which he was berated by witnesses, including Jordan's mother, Norma Jordan, who referred to the murderer as a "bastard" and worse in testimony.

District Attorney John Newsome, who will step down next month after failing to win the Republican nomination to run for re-election, said he struggled for weeks with the decision to take the death penalty off the table and offer Lee a plea deal.

"It has been suggested by some in the media that this was the easy way out," Newsome told Miller. "I can assure the court this hasn't been easy."

The deal required Lee to plead guilty to first-degree murder, as well as attempted murder, for firing at two other officers who were at the Dec. 5, 2006, traffic stop. Lee agreed to take the longest-allowable prison terms and waive his right to appeal. The result was life without parole for killing Jordan, plus 167 years for other crimes.

On the evening of Dec. 4, Lee had been drinking at a south Colorado Springs bar. He was pulled over by police on the Fountain Boulevard bridge that spans Sand Creek after driving through a red light. Officers smelled alcohol on Lee's breath, and summoned Jordan, whose job was to handle drunken-driving cases.

Before Jordan could give him a roadside sobriety test, Lee jumped out of his car and opened fire with a .40-caliber pistol.

The first shot knocked Jordan down. Lee then stood over Jordan and fired five more times, fatally wounding the officer before he could draw his weapon, prosecutors said.

Two other officers opened fire at Lee, who kept shooting until his pistol was literally knocked from his hand by a police bullet.

Prosecutors said Lee, who was on probation for a felony eluding conviction, shot Jordan because he didn't want to go to jail. He had called friends on his cell phone during the traffic stop and said "I'm in trouble," and "not to look down on him."

Lee was wounded in both arms and was taken to a hospital, where blood tests for alcohol were drawn that revealed a blood alcohol concentration of .266, more than three times the legal limit for driving.

Lee's drunkenness became a key factor in the case, prosecutors said.

"Intoxication evidence can be offered to negate intent," May said.

Other factors came into play that could have been used at trial to beat the death penalty, including Lee's emotional state when he shot Jordan.

Prosecutors said state law has set the bar so high to obtain a death sentence that it's become "virtually impossible."

The state's death row now houses two inmates.

Jordan was the second Colorado Springs police officer killed in the line of duty in 2006.

Detective Jared Jensen was shot and killed trying to apprehend a fugitive at a bus stop in February. Jereme Lamberth was convicted by a jury of second-degree murder this year and is serving a 96-year sentence.

Jordan's family and some fellow officers wanted prosecutors to at least try for the ultimate sentence against Lee.

Jordan's mother, Norma Jordan, lashed out at Lee during her statement to the court.

"I wish we went for the death penalty, and I wish I could carry the sentence out myself," she said. "Then maybe I would feel better."

Jordan's sister, Sue Wertz, told the stone-faced Lee that he should kill himself.

"Just remember those sheets twist into a knot," she said. "They'd make a great noose."

Police officers were less emotional in their statements, but were clear that many who served with Jordan wanted Lee to die.

"There are many members of the police department who don't like this outcome and believe that Mr. Lee should pay for his crimes with his life," Deputy Chief Ron Gibson told the judge.

After Lee was taken away, Police Chief Richard Myers said there are no hard feelings about the sentence.

"It may not be the justice some people sought," he said. "But it's the justice we got."

-

Contact the writer: 636-0240 or tom.roeder@gazette.com