#Julius jones oklahoma trial#

Jones won a partial academic scholarship to the University of Oklahoma but withdrew during his second semester. Jones has said that he knew Jordan was not a good influence, but wanted to help him. Blake and Taylor Griffin's father coached Jones and his friend, Christopher Jordan, who later became his co-defendant in the 1999 crime. He attended John Marshall High School in Oklahoma City, where he played basketball and football, and graduated in 1998 with a 3.8 grade point average, 11th in his class. He was the second of three siblings and has one younger sister, Antoinette, and one older brother, Antonio. Jones was born to Madeline Davis-Jones on July 25, 1980, in Oklahoma. 4.1 Parole board hearings and public advocacy.3.3 First application for post-conviction relief.3.2.7 Ineffective assistance of counsel.

#Julius jones oklahoma trial#

3.2.6 Trial errors and prosecutorial misconduct.

3.2.2 Admissibility and sufficiency of evidence.

However, four hours before his scheduled execution, Oklahoma Governor Kevin Stitt commuted his sentence to life imprisonment without parole.

Jones was scheduled to be executed on November 18, 2021. Jones was convicted of the crime on the basis of what the Oklahoma Court of Criminal Appeals later characterized as an 'overwhelming' body of evidence consisting of 'a co-defendant who directly implicated Jones, eyewitness identification, incriminating statements made by Jones after the crime, flight from police, damning physical evidence hidden in Jones's parents' home, and an interlocking web of other physical and testimonial evidence consistent with the State's theory.' Jones and his defense team maintain that he was at home with his family at the time of the murder and that his co-defendant Christopher Jordan is the true perpetrator of the crime, contending that eyewitness descriptions of the killer better describe Jordan than Jones, and noting that three jailhouse informants have said that they have heard Jordan confess to the shooting. His case has received international attention due to claims of innocence and controversy surrounding his trial and conviction. Julius Darius Jones (born July 25, 1980) is an American prisoner and former death row inmate from Oklahoma who was convicted of the July 1999 murder of Paul Howell. Life imprisonment without the possibility of parole (2021).The request said Oklahoma’s lethal injection procedures post a “serious and substantial risk of severe suffering and pain to prisoners” and cited last month’s execution in which John Marion Grant convulsed and vomited as he was being put to death. 1 that Stitt commute Jones’ sentence to life in prison, with several members of the panel agreeing they had doubts about the evidence that led to Jones’ conviction.Īttorneys for Jones filed a last-minute, emergency request Thursday afternoon seeking a temporary stop to his execution. The state’s Pardon and Parole Board recommended in a 3-1 vote on Nov. Julius Jones forever changed our lives and the lives of his family and friends. We would like to thank the countless people in the Oklahoma Attorney General’s office, the Oklahoma County District Attorney’s Office and law enforcement agencies across the state for their tireless efforts and unwavering support for the last 22 years. We take comfort that his decision affirmed the guilt of Julius Jones and that he shall not be eligible to apply for, or be considered for, a commutation, pardon or parole for the remainder of his life. We know Governor Stitt had a difficult decision to make. Howell’s family released a statement Thursday expressing their mixed reactions to Stitt’s decision.