Henryetta Resident Found Guilty By Federal Jury Of Murdering His Father

MUSKOGEE, OKLAHOMA - The United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Oklahoma, announced today that Diamond Levi Britt, age 26, of Henryetta, Oklahoma was found guilty by a federal jury of First-Degree Murder in Indian Country, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Sections 1111(a), 1151, and 1153. The jury trial began with testimony on Tuesday, July 13, 2021 and concluded on Thursday, July 15, 2021 with the guilty verdict. The punishment for First-Degree Murder in Indian Country is imprisonment for life.

During the jury trial, the United States presented evidence that on September 16, 2019, the defendant attacked his father, Gary Britt, with a 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 further demonstrated that on at least two occasions prior to the attack the defendant informed family members he intended to kill his father. After the vicious attack, the defendant left the crime scene and was observed by Henryetta police officers walking along a roadway carrying a sword. The defendant was taken into custody where he made additional statements indicating he knowingly and deliberately killed his father, with premeditation. The defendant said he wanted to kill his father on the night of the attack and that he regularly thought about stabbing his father.

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

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 trial and ordered the completion of a presentence report. Sentencing will be scheduled following completion of the report. Britt was remanded to the custody of the United States Marshal pending the imposition of sentencing.

Special Assistant United States Attorneys Kyle J. Essley and Robert Reeves represented the United States.