DOVER, Del. (AP) - The state Board of Pardons has rejected a commutation request from a man serving a 46-year sentence for manslaughter after initially being sentenced to life in prison for three counts of murder.
The board on Thursday denied a commutation request from 53-year-old Mark A. Kirk.
Kirk was convicted of murder, assault and arson after a 1996 fire at a New Castle-area apartment complex killed a neighbor and his two children.
Prosecutors said Kirk deliberately poured rum on a hot stove after he and his girlfriend argued following a day of drinking with friends.
A judge later reduced Kirk's murder convictions to manslaughter and substituted his three life prison terms for 46 years behind bars.
Last month, a court commissioner recommended that a judge deny the latest appeal from Kirk.