Virginia is urged to spare killer’s life

RICHMOND, Va. — The daughter of a sheriff’s deputy killed by a man set to be executed in Virginia said Wednesday that she has urged the state’s governor to spare the man’s life.

William Morva is to receive a lethal injection today for the 2006 killings of Derrick McFarland, a hospital security guard, and Eric Sutphin, a sheriff’s deputy.

Rachel Sutphin, the deputy’s daughter, said she is among those urging Democratic Gov. Terry McAuliffe to halt Morva’s execution.

“I am against the death penalty for religious and moral reasons,” Sutphin said in an email to reporters. “I have fought and will continue to fight for clemency for all death row inmates until Virginia declares the death penalty unconstitutional.”