True Crime Chronicles: Heinous murder of south Oklahoma teen was entangled in legal morass due to McGuirt Ruling
- Dennis McCaslin
- Jun 1, 2025
- 5 min read
Miles Sterling Bench, born in 1991, grew up in a seemingly ordinary setting but displayed troubling behavior from a young age.
Raised in part in Wilmington, Illinois, before moving to Oklahoma, Bench’s adolescence was marked by incidents that foreshadowed his later actions. Court records reveal he was reprimanded multiple times for “inappropriate behavior” toward female classmates in high school, including allegations of unwanted touching while attending schools in Ada and Davis.
.In 2008, at age 17, Bench was arrested in Illinois for alleged domestic assault and battery against his stepfather, hinting at a pattern of volatility.
By 2012, at age 21, Bench was living with his grandparents in a rural area outside Velma, a small farming community in Stephens County, Oklahoma. He worked at the Teepee Totem, a local convenience store, where he was training to close the store alone.
To those who knew him casually, like his cousin Clayton Jenson, Bench appeared unremarkable, even discussing ambitions of becoming a mixed martial arts fighter. Yet, beneath this exterior lay a capacity for violence that would soon devastate a family and a community.
On June 6, 2012, 16-year-old Braylee Henry, a vibrant teenager from Velma described by her family as “loving” and “compassionate,” entered the Teepee Totem to buy a soda and candy.
What should have been a routine stop turned tragic. According to prosecutors, Bench, who was working at the store, attacked Henry at the soda fountain, strangling, beating, and kicking her with such force that she suffered acute blunt force trauma to her head, neck, torso, and extremities.
Her body was later found in a pasture on land owned by Bench’s grandparents, where he lived.
Bench fled the scene in Henry’s car, leaving behind a trail of evidence, including blood on his clothing and in the vehicle. He was apprehended hours later on Interstate 40 near Clinton by a Custer County sheriff’s deputy, driving Henry’s car and wearing blood-stained clothes.
The murder was described by Stephens County District Attorney Jason Hicks as “one of the most horrific cases” he had ever seen, noting its brutality in court filings. Henry’s death sent shockwaves through Velma, a tight-knit rural community where such violence was unthinkable.
Her parents, Renee Henson and Billy Henry, were devastated, later speaking of Braylee as a “phenomenal human being” who “absolutely did not deserve” her fate.
In February 2015, a Stephens County jury convicted Bench of first-degree murder after a month-long trial. The evidence was overwhelming: witness testimonies, physical evidence, and Bench’s own statements to a mental health specialist admitting to the attack.
Prosecutors emphasized the “especially heinous, atrocious, or cruel” nature of the crime, securing a death penalty sentence on March 5, 2015.
The Oklahoma Court of Criminal Appeals upheld the conviction and sentence in October 2018, rejecting Bench’s appeals for a new trial or venue change, affirming that he posed a “continued threat to society.” District Attorney Hicks expressed confidence in the verdict, stating, “At some point, Bench is going to get the punishment he deserves.”
The case took a dramatic turn in 2020 with the U.S. Supreme Court’s McGirt v. Oklahoma ruling. In a 5-4 decision, the Court held that much of eastern Oklahoma, including lands of the Five Civilized Tribes (Cherokee, Chickasaw, Choctaw, Muscogee Creek, and Seminole), remains Native American reservation land for criminal jurisdiction purposes.
This meant that crimes involving Native American defendants or victims on tribal land fall under federal or tribal jurisdiction, not the state’s. Bench, an enrolled member of the Choctaw Nation, committed the crime on land within the historic Chickasaw Nation reservation, including parts of Stephens County and the city of Duncan.
On May 6, 2021, the Oklahoma Court of Criminal Appeals overturned Bench’s conviction, citing McGirt. The court found that because Bench was a tribal member and the crime occurred on tribal land, the state lacked jurisdiction to prosecute him.
The decision was unanimous but reluctant, with judges expressing frustration.
Judge Gary Lumpkin called the crime “despicable” but acknowledged he was bound by McGirt. Judge Robert Hudson urged Congress to find a “practical solution” to the ruling’s fallout, while Presiding Judge Dana Kuehn lamented the “confusion, frustration, and pain” caused by applying McGirt.
The ruling meant Bench’s case would likely move to federal court for retrial, with uncertainty about whether the death penalty would remain an option, as federal law requires tribal consent for capital punishment in such cases, and only the Sac & Fox Nation in Oklahoma permits it.
The legal saga continued to unfold. In August 2021, the Oklahoma Court of Criminal Appeals withdrew its May decision after the U.S. Supreme Court clarified that McGirt could not be applied retroactively to cases already finalized.
The court reinstated Bench’s conviction and death sentence, bringing relief to Braylee’s family.
Renee Henson, Braylee’s mother, expressed gratitude, saying, “It was heart-wrenching for our family… I’m so thankful this decision was handed down.” District Attorney Hicks called the reinstatement a “major step” toward justice, though he acknowledged potential federal appeals.
However, Bench’s legal team persisted. In December 2021, the Oklahoma Court of Criminal Appeals denied his application for post-conviction relief, ruling that he should have raised the McGirt claim during his initial 2015 appeal, not later.
Judge Gary Lumpkin emphasized that Bench received a fair trial, and Hicks reiterated that the McGirt decision had “wrecked havoc” on Oklahoma’s justice system, arguing that pre-McGirt cases should remain final.
Despite this, Bench retains the option to appeal at the federal level, leaving the case’s ultimate resolution uncertain.
As of June 1, 2025, Miles Bench remains in state custody at the Oklahoma State Penitentiary in McAlester, with his conviction and death sentence reinstated. However, the possibility of federal appeals looms, and there is no clear timeline for when--or if--an execution will occur.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office has charged Bench federally with kidnapping resulting in death, a separate charge stemming from the same incident, which could lead to a federal trial if his state conviction is overturned again.
The uncertainty about the death penalty in federal court persists, as the Choctaw and Chickasaw Nations have not opted into capital punishment.
The case has drawn attention to broader issues raised by McGirt. Former Oklahoma Attorney General Mike Hunter, along with state and tribal leaders, pushed for federal legislation to allow state-tribal compacts on criminal jurisdiction, arguing that the ruling has strained federal resources and left victims’ families in limbo.
District Attorney Hicks estimates that 20% of Stephens County’s population could be affected by McGirt-related jurisdictional shifts, with dozens of cases potentially overturned.
Braylee’s parents, Renee Henson and Billy Henry, have voiced their anguish over reliving their daughter’s murder, with Billy referencing Oklahoma’s 1907 statehood to argue that the McGirt ruling undermines long-standing legal frameworks.
In Velma, the memory of Braylee Henry endures. Her family and community continue to mourn a young life cut short, while navigating the legal complexities that have prolonged their quest for justice.
The Teepee Totem, once a mundane fixture of small-town life, remains a somber reminder of the tragedy. As the Bench case lingers in the courts, it encapsulates the broader tension between tribal sovereignty, state authority, and the pursuit of justice for victims like Braylee.
For now, the Henry family waits, hoping that the man who took their daughter’s life will face the consequences they believe he deserves.
As District Attorney Hicks put it, “Stability in the rule of law is something this nation was founded on, and cases such as this one should not be disturbed.” Whether that stability will hold in the face of ongoing legal challenges remains to be seen.
