Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit upheld Friot’s ruling.Oklahoma Gov. Although then-Attorney General Mike Hunter had told Judge Friot in March 2020 that the state would not seek executions while the lawsuit was pending, and Friot told the counsel for the prisoner during a May 2020 hearing “if we should have any indication that that will happen, I will be, to put it mildly, immediately available,” Friot denied the prisoners’ request to enjoin their executions and the U.S. Earlier in October, the circuit court reversed Friot’s order and reinstated the men as plaintiffs in the suit. Friot for not identifying an alternative method by which they could be executed. Grant convulsed and vomited during the execution, which used the same protocol that had been implicated in a series of earlier botched executions in the state.Ī trial is pending on the constitutionality of Oklahoma’s lethal-injection protocol, but Oklahoma set execution dates for six men dismissed from the lawsuit by district court judge Stephen P. The clemency order mooted court proceedings on an emergency motion Jones’ lawyers had filed in federal district court seeking to halt his execution because of serious problems in Oklahoma’s October 28 execution of John Grant. More than 1,800 students at 13 Oklahoma City Public Schools participated in a walkout on November 17 in protest of the impending execution date. In the days before the scheduled execution, representatives of the European Union and nearly a dozen European countries publicly urged Stitt to commute Jones’ sentence. Celebritiesįrom the rapper Common to reality television personality Kim Kardashian West and athletes with Oklahoma connections, including NFL quarterbacks Baker Mayfield and Dak Prescott and NBA stars Blake Griffin, Russell Westbrook, and Trae Young, spoke out against the execution. More than 6.5 million people signed a petition calling for clemency after a documentary, The Last Defense, produced by Oscar- and Emmy-winning actress Viola Davis aired on ABC. Jones’ case has drawn worldwide attention, both for his claims of innocence and for the racial bias that infected his trial. Grateful that the Governor has prevented an irreparable mistake.” Of the overwhelming evidence of Julius’s innocence,” Bass said, “we are ![]() While we had hoped the Governor would adopt the Board’s recommendation in fullīy commuting Julius’s sentence to life with the possibility of parole in light Justice system by ensuring that Oklahoma does not execute an innocent man. Taking “an important step today towards restoring public faith in the criminal Jones’ lead counsel in the clemency proceedings, praised Governor Stitt for Have determined to commute Julius Jones’ sentence to life imprisonment without Statement released with his order, Governor Stitt said, “After prayerfulĬonsideration and reviewing materials presented by all sides of this case, I And put simply, I have doubts about this case.” September 13, Board Chairman Adam Luck, who wasĪppointed by Governor Stitt, said, “I believe in death penalty cases there On September 13, and again on November 1, theīoard voted 3-1 to recommend clemency. Of parole, based on evidence of Jones’ innocence. Twice recommended that Jones’ sentence be reduced to life with the possibility Months leading up to Stitt’s decision, the Oklahoma Pardon and Parole Board had Never again be eligible to apply for, be considered for, or receive anyĪdditional commutation, pardon, or parole.” ![]() Stitt granted the commutation “on the condition that shall Sentence to life without possibility of parole. Governor Kevin Stitt has granted clemency to death-rowĪnnounced four hours before his scheduled execution on November 18, 2021, Stitt
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