Prayer vigils were held at the Oklahoma state Capitol, and barricades were erected outside the governor’s mansion. Jones' looming execution - and Stitt's silence on his decision - prompted high school students across Oklahoma City to walk out of their classes Wednesday, and protests had been planned Thursday in Los Angeles Washington Newark, New Jersey and Saint Paul, Minnesota. RELATED: Julius Jones: Oklahoma panel recommends governor spare death row inmate’s life "Governor Stitt took an important step today towards restoring public faith in the criminal justice system by ensuring that Oklahoma does not execute an innocent man," Bass said in a statement. Several panel members said they doubted the evidence that led to his conviction.Īmanda Bass, a lawyer representing Jones, said the team had hoped Stitt would grant Jones a chance at parole, but they were grateful that he wasn't being executed. Just Wednesday, in a separate death row case, the state's Pardon and Parole Board voted 3-2 to grant clemency, citing lethal injection protocols.Įarlier this month, that same board also recommended in a 3-1 vote that Stitt commute Jones’ sentence to life in prison with the possibility of parole. Oklahoma's methods for capital punishment have been a concern for years. But today is a good day, and I am thankful to Governor Stitt for that."Įarlier Thursday, Jones' attorneys filed a last-minute emergency request seeking a temporary stop to his execution, saying Oklahoma’s lethal injection procedures pose a "serious and substantial risk of severe suffering and pain to prisoners." The lawyers cited last month’s execution in which John Marion Grant convulsed and vomited as he was put to death. "I still believe that every day Julius spends behind bars is an injustice, and I will never stop speaking out for him or fighting to free him. "For over twenty years, I have been haunted by the idea of watching my baby boy die in an execution chamber for a murder that occurred when he was home with his family," Madeline Davis-Jones said. Jones' mother released a statement Thursday expressing her gratitude. Julius Jones is picturing in a photo dated Feb.
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