Whatever happens next, a convicted murderer will remain guilty under the law, but he may still have a chance at freedom.
An Oklahoma parole board has voted to commute the sentence of 41-year-old death row inmate Julius Jones for killing a man in front of his family during a 1999 carjacking, according to local reports. “I believe in death penalty cases there should be no doubt, and put simply, I have doubts in this case,” board Chairman Adam Luck reportedly said. “I cannot ignore those doubts, especially when the stakes are life and death.” The 3-to-1 recommendation of the Oklahoma Pardon and Parole puts Jones’s fate before Gov. Kevin Stitt (R), whose determination will be closely watched by death penalty opponents, multiple celebrities, and many in the general public. Stitt’s office said he is still considering his decision on what to do. “The governor takes his role in this process seriously and will carefully consider the Pardon and Parole Board’s recommendation as he does in all cases,” the office said in a statement to KOCO.
