David McMillan

1. NEW YORK TIMES: Killing of a Gay Resident Stirs Activism in an East Texas Town
2. IN HIS OWN WORDS: An interview with Texas inmate David McMillan

Texas officials have denied parole for the only defendant to receive a life sentence in a 1993 hate crime that ended in the death of a Tyler man who was gay.

David McMillan, formerly of Flint, became eligible for parole in December after serving 30 years for kidnapping Nicholas West and robbing him of his money, watch, and his truck.

West, whose body was found in a Noonday clay pit, died from multiple gunshots fired by two other defendants, who have since been executed.

McMillan, 47, says prison has changed him, making him a better person capable of contributing to the free society. The Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles disagreed, saying the brutal and violent nature of his crime reflects someone who poses a continuing threat.

“The record indicates the instant offense has elements of … conscious selection of victim’s vulnerability indicating a conscious disregard for the lives, safety, or property of others,” according to a Feb. 1 decision posted on the Texas Department of Criminal Justice website.

McMillan expressed his disappointment and frustration about the decision in an email sent Feb. 6 to Deanna Luprete, executive director and founder of The Epicenter Initiative. The nonprofit organization is dedicated to helping youth offenders serving extreme sentences in the adult prison system.

McMillan was 17 years old at the time of the offense. During his incarceration, Luprete said McMillan has taken every opportunity to better himself.

She said she is “appalled” by the board’s decision.

“The family and I were just sure that he was going to walk out of his door and contribute to society,” she said in a telephone interview Thursday.

Luprete shared an email she received from McMillan, who expressed frustration that the board appeared to disregard his faith, self-reflection, rehabilitation efforts and classes he has taken.

“There is nothing more I can ‘show’ them that I have changed,” he wrote. “So, I will continue to live who I am today overshadowed by my past.”

West’s murder has not been forgotten in Tyler, especially in the LGBTQ+ community. More than 100 supporters and gay rights activists gathered at Bergfeld Park in 2013 to remember West on the 20th anniversary of his death. Gatherings have continued in years since at the park, where a memorial stone was dedicated to West in 2010. The stone reads, “We will remember” under West’s name.

Lou Ann Smoot, author and treasurer of East Texas Parents, Family, and Friends of Lesbians and Gays or PFLAG, said she was not yet a member of the gay community in 1993 but recalls the outpouring of support for the prosecution of the three defendants.

“To have someone so blatantly pick out a gay man … and murder him, was a frightening event,” Smoot said.

She said she does not believe many in the gay community today would feel safe if McMillan was to be released. However, she said she is undecided.

“I do hate that someone has to spend their life in prison, especially a young man,” Smoot said. “If I could be assured he no longer has a prejudice against gay people, especially a prejudice … to the extent to kill … I could be convinced to let him out.”

Luprete said McMillan’s efforts to gain release were hindered by his inability to hire an attorney to represent him during the parole process.

She said she intends to assist McMillan in filing a request for a special review and to hire an attorney.

West, a 23-year-old medical records clerk, was abducted from Bergfeld Park in Tyler the night of Nov. 30, 1993. In statements to police, defendants Donald Aldrich, 29, and 19-year-old Henry Dunn Jr. admitted West was targeted because he was gay.

That factor drew national attention to the case — which is believed to be the first case in Smith County to officially fall under the 1990 Federal Hate Crimes Statistics Act which required data collection of certain crimes including crimes based on sexual orientation.

Aldrich, who was tried in Kerrville, and Dunn, who was tried in Tyler, were both convicted of capital murder and sentenced to die by lethal injection. Dunn was executed in 2003 and Aldrich in 2004.

Smith County prosecutors also charged McMillan with capital murder but did not seek the death penalty because evidence did not show McMillan had actually caused West’s death. Although McMillan fired a shotgun that night, he missed hitting the victim.

Jurors rejected the capital murder charge against McMillan and instead convicted him of aggravated kidnapping and aggravated robbery. The same jury recommended a life sentence, which required McMillan to serve at least 30 years before becoming eligible for parole.

In 1996, then-Criminal District Attorney Jack Skeen said the life sentence represented “a final justice” for West.

Smith County District Attorney Jacob Putman, who took office in 2019, said his office routinely opposes parole in such cases but declined to comment on the McMillan decision because he was not privy to the information the parole board used in making the decision.

“Without that information, I cannot meaningfully comment on their decision,” he said.

McMillan’s next date for eligibility is in February 2026.