Julius Jones Execution Scheduled For Thursday

The execution date for death row inmate Julius Jones is on Thursday, and the clock is ticking for Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt’s decision on whether to grant him clemency.

The governor has one more full day to make a decision. He will either approve or deny the recommendation from the Pardon and Parole Board to not execute Jones.

The Jones family and supporters made another attempt on Tuesday to speak with Stitt. However, the governor did not want to meet with them at that time.

In September, the Oklahoma Pardon and Parole Board recommended commuting Jones’ sentence to life in prison with the possibility of parole to Gov. Stitt.

The decision remains with Stitt, who said in September in a news release that he was waiting to make a decision based on the clemency hearing.

“I am not accepting the Pardon and Parole Board’s recommendation to commute the sentence of Julius Jones because a clemency hearing, not a commutation hearing, is the appropriate venue for our state to consider death row cases,” Stitt said in a Sept. 28 press release.

On Nov. 1, the Oklahoma Pardon and Parole Board voted to recommend clemency for Jones in a 3-1 favor. As of Tuesday, Stitt hasn’t publicly announced a decision.

Julius Jones was 19 years old when he was arrested for the 1999 murder of Oklahoma businessman Paul Howell, and sentenced to death in 2002.

In the years since, Jones’ defense team has argued that racial bias and missteps from his then public-defense team played a role in his conviction.

About J. Williams

Check Also

Francis Scott Key Bridge

Biden Pledges Federal Dollars For ‘entire cost’ To Rebuild Collapsed Baltimore Bridge

Jacob Fischler, Michigan Advance President Joe Biden called Tuesday for the federal government to foot …

Leave a Reply