Sayre, OK – A Beckham County man convicted in the 2024 shooting death of Colter Jake Vaught has been sentenced to life in prison with the possibility of parole.
Clayton Samson Hays, 38, of Carter, received the sentence in Beckham County District Court after the judge followed the jury’s recommendation of life. Under the sentence, Hays will be eligible for parole after serving 38 years.
Vaught’s mother delivered an emotional victim impact statement before the court imposed the sentence.
Hays was found guilty of first-degree murder on October 3, 2025, following a five-day jury trial in Sayre. Jurors deliberated before returning a verdict of guilty and recommending life for Hays.
The case stems from a shooting on January 11, 2024, near an oilfield business on South Merritt Road in Elk City. Investigators said Hays fired a 9mm handgun at Vaught, 42, during a confrontation at a stop sign. Hays told authorities Vaught tried to enter his semi-truck and began striking him, and that he fired in self-defense. Vaught was shot in the chest and died at the scene.
According to a probable cause affidavit, investigators reported finding no visible injuries on Hays consistent with a physical struggle. The affidavit also outlined an ongoing feud between the two men, including a verbal altercation at the Vaught family home just weeks before the shooting.
Hays was initially charged with first-degree manslaughter, but prosecutors later upgraded the charge to first-degree murder.
While out on a $500,000 bond in May 2024, Hays drew additional scrutiny when he was accused of desecrating a roadside memorial for Vaught. An affidavit alleges that on May 16, a pickup stopped at the memorial and someone threw a white plastic bag at the base of the cross. The bag was later found to contain animal feces. GPS data from Hays’ ankle monitor allegedly placed him at the scene at the time of the incident.
He was arrested the next day and booked back into the Beckham County Jail. In addition to the murder charge, Hays was charged with outraging public decency in connection with the memorial incident.
With the judge’s ruling, Hays will begin serving his life sentence in the custody of the Oklahoma Department of Corrections, with parole eligibility coming after 38 years.
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