Oklahoma governor commutes Julius Jones’ death sentence

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Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt commuted the death sentence of Julius Jones on Thursday, just hours before his scheduled execution.

Jones has always maintained his innocence for more than two decades in the 1999 killing of a suburban Oklahoma City businessman.

Julius Jones death sentence commuted

Governor Stitt commuted the 41-year-old’s death sentence to life imprisonment without the possibility of parole. He had been scheduled for execution at 4 p.m.

“After prayerful consideration and reviewing materials presented by all sides of this case, I have determined to commute Julius Jones’ sentence to life imprisonment without the possibility of parole,” Stitt said in a news release.

Julius Jones Execution

Earlier Thursday, Jones’ attorneys had filed a last-minute emergency request seeking a temporary stop to his execution, saying Oklahoma’s lethal injection procedures post a “serious and substantial risk of severe suffering and pain to prisoners” and citing last month’s execution in which John Marion Grant convulsed and vomited as he was being put to death.

On Nov. 1, 2021 the state’s Pardon and Parole Board recommended in a 3-1 vote to commute Jones’ sentence to life in prison, with several members of the panel stating they had doubts about the evidence that led to Jones’ conviction.

Jones was convicted of first-degree murder and sentenced to die for the 1999 shooting death of Edmond businessman Paul Howell during a carjacking.

His case drew widespread attention after it was profiled in “The Last Defense,” a three-episode documentary produced by actress Viola Davis that aired on ABC in 2018.