SUBSCRIBE TO OUR FREE NEWSLETTER
Daily news & progressive opinion—funded by the people, not the corporations—delivered straight to your inbox.
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
Julius Jones was scheduled to be executed on November 18, 2021. (Photo: Oklahoma Department of Corrections)
'Hallelujah!': Justice Advocates Rejoice at 11th-Hour Halt to Julius Jones Execution
"There is much to say about the problems with sentencing Julius Jones to life in prison without the possibility of parole. But today... an innocent man's life has been spared."
Nov 18, 2021
Human rights advocates rejoiced Thursday after Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt heeded the advice of his state's pardon board--which found compelling evidence of the condemned man's innocence--and commuted the death sentence of Julius Jones to life imprisonment without parole with just hours to go before his scheduled execution.
"Now we organize to get Gov. Stitt out of office so Julius Jones can gain his full freedom back."
"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, a Republican, said in a statement.
"Gov. Stitt took an important step today toward restoring public faith in the criminal justice system by ensuring Oklahoma does not execute an innocent man," Amanda Bass, one of Jones' attorneys, said in a statement. "We are grateful that the governor has prevented an irreparable mistake."
Forty-one-year-old Jones was sentenced to death in 2002 after being convicted by a nearly all-white jury--one of whose members said that "they should just take the nigger out and shoot him behind the jail"--for the murder of businessman Paul Scott Howell.
However, on September 13, the state pardons board--a majority of whose members were appointed by the Republican governor--voted 3-1 to recommend Stitt commute Jones' death sentence to life imprisonment without the possibility of parole. The board voted again to recommend clemency on November 1.
Millions of people around the world--including intellectuals, celebrities, and athletes--joined religious and political figures and institutions in calling for clemency for Jones.
Jim Wallis, director of the Center on Faith and Justice at Georgetown University, said that "there is much to say about the problems with sentencing Julius Jones to life in prison without the possibility of parole. But today is a day to rejoice in God's mercy and celebrate life. An innocent man's life has been spared. Hallelujah!"
While Stitt's clemency order was welcomed, justice advocates decried a stipulation that Jones "shall never again be eligible to apply for, be considered for, or receive any additional commutation, pardon, or parole."
"Now we organize to get Gov. Stitt out of office so Julius Jones can gain his full freedom back," tweeted artist and organizer Brisa Lauren. "Because not only does he not deserve to be executed, he does not deserve life in prison!"
Missourians for Alternatives to the Death Penalty tweeted: "While we raise our voices in joy knowing Julius will not be executed, we know the work ahead continues. Freedom for Julius Jones!"
An Urgent Message From Our Co-Founder
Dear Common Dreams reader, It’s been nearly 30 years since I co-founded Common Dreams with my late wife, Lina Newhouser. We had the radical notion that journalism should serve the public good, not corporate profits. It was clear to us from the outset what it would take to build such a project. No paid advertisements. No corporate sponsors. No millionaire publisher telling us what to think or do. Many people said we wouldn't last a year, but we proved those doubters wrong. Together with a tremendous team of journalists and dedicated staff, we built an independent media outlet free from the constraints of profits and corporate control. Our mission has always been simple: To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. Building Common Dreams was not easy. Our survival was never guaranteed. When you take on the most powerful forces—Wall Street greed, fossil fuel industry destruction, Big Tech lobbyists, and uber-rich oligarchs who have spent billions upon billions rigging the economy and democracy in their favor—the only bulwark you have is supporters who believe in your work. But here’s the urgent message from me today. It's never been this bad out there. And it's never been this hard to keep us going. At the very moment Common Dreams is most needed, the threats we face are intensifying. We need your support now more than ever. We don't accept corporate advertising and never will. We don't have a paywall because we don't think people should be blocked from critical news based on their ability to pay. Everything we do is funded by the donations of readers like you. When everyone does the little they can afford, we are strong. But if that support retreats or dries up, so do we. Will you donate now to make sure Common Dreams not only survives but thrives? —Craig Brown, Co-founder |
Our work is licensed under Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0). Feel free to republish and share widely.
Human rights advocates rejoiced Thursday after Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt heeded the advice of his state's pardon board--which found compelling evidence of the condemned man's innocence--and commuted the death sentence of Julius Jones to life imprisonment without parole with just hours to go before his scheduled execution.
"Now we organize to get Gov. Stitt out of office so Julius Jones can gain his full freedom back."
"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, a Republican, said in a statement.
"Gov. Stitt took an important step today toward restoring public faith in the criminal justice system by ensuring Oklahoma does not execute an innocent man," Amanda Bass, one of Jones' attorneys, said in a statement. "We are grateful that the governor has prevented an irreparable mistake."
Forty-one-year-old Jones was sentenced to death in 2002 after being convicted by a nearly all-white jury--one of whose members said that "they should just take the nigger out and shoot him behind the jail"--for the murder of businessman Paul Scott Howell.
However, on September 13, the state pardons board--a majority of whose members were appointed by the Republican governor--voted 3-1 to recommend Stitt commute Jones' death sentence to life imprisonment without the possibility of parole. The board voted again to recommend clemency on November 1.
Millions of people around the world--including intellectuals, celebrities, and athletes--joined religious and political figures and institutions in calling for clemency for Jones.
Jim Wallis, director of the Center on Faith and Justice at Georgetown University, said that "there is much to say about the problems with sentencing Julius Jones to life in prison without the possibility of parole. But today is a day to rejoice in God's mercy and celebrate life. An innocent man's life has been spared. Hallelujah!"
While Stitt's clemency order was welcomed, justice advocates decried a stipulation that Jones "shall never again be eligible to apply for, be considered for, or receive any additional commutation, pardon, or parole."
"Now we organize to get Gov. Stitt out of office so Julius Jones can gain his full freedom back," tweeted artist and organizer Brisa Lauren. "Because not only does he not deserve to be executed, he does not deserve life in prison!"
Missourians for Alternatives to the Death Penalty tweeted: "While we raise our voices in joy knowing Julius will not be executed, we know the work ahead continues. Freedom for Julius Jones!"
Human rights advocates rejoiced Thursday after Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt heeded the advice of his state's pardon board--which found compelling evidence of the condemned man's innocence--and commuted the death sentence of Julius Jones to life imprisonment without parole with just hours to go before his scheduled execution.
"Now we organize to get Gov. Stitt out of office so Julius Jones can gain his full freedom back."
"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, a Republican, said in a statement.
"Gov. Stitt took an important step today toward restoring public faith in the criminal justice system by ensuring Oklahoma does not execute an innocent man," Amanda Bass, one of Jones' attorneys, said in a statement. "We are grateful that the governor has prevented an irreparable mistake."
Forty-one-year-old Jones was sentenced to death in 2002 after being convicted by a nearly all-white jury--one of whose members said that "they should just take the nigger out and shoot him behind the jail"--for the murder of businessman Paul Scott Howell.
However, on September 13, the state pardons board--a majority of whose members were appointed by the Republican governor--voted 3-1 to recommend Stitt commute Jones' death sentence to life imprisonment without the possibility of parole. The board voted again to recommend clemency on November 1.
Millions of people around the world--including intellectuals, celebrities, and athletes--joined religious and political figures and institutions in calling for clemency for Jones.
Jim Wallis, director of the Center on Faith and Justice at Georgetown University, said that "there is much to say about the problems with sentencing Julius Jones to life in prison without the possibility of parole. But today is a day to rejoice in God's mercy and celebrate life. An innocent man's life has been spared. Hallelujah!"
While Stitt's clemency order was welcomed, justice advocates decried a stipulation that Jones "shall never again be eligible to apply for, be considered for, or receive any additional commutation, pardon, or parole."
"Now we organize to get Gov. Stitt out of office so Julius Jones can gain his full freedom back," tweeted artist and organizer Brisa Lauren. "Because not only does he not deserve to be executed, he does not deserve life in prison!"
Missourians for Alternatives to the Death Penalty tweeted: "While we raise our voices in joy knowing Julius will not be executed, we know the work ahead continues. Freedom for Julius Jones!"
We've had enough. The 1% own and operate the corporate media. They are doing everything they can to defend the status quo, squash dissent and protect the wealthy and the powerful. The Common Dreams media model is different. We cover the news that matters to the 99%. Our mission? To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. How? Nonprofit. Independent. Reader-supported. Free to read. Free to republish. Free to share. With no advertising. No paywalls. No selling of your data. Thousands of small donations fund our newsroom and allow us to continue publishing. Can you chip in? We can't do it without you. Thank you.