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===Legal Proceedings===
===Legal Proceedings===
Jones did not take the stand during the trial and was found guilty and sentenced to death in 2002.<ref name="Querry-Thompson"/><ref name="cbs1"/> Jones' [[co-defendant]], Christopher Jordan, cooperated with prosecutors and placed the blame on Jones.<ref name="Osborne"/> During the trial, Jones' defense team did not bring up his [[alibi]] on the night of the crime and did not have Jones' family members testify.<ref name="Querry-Thompson"/><ref name="ip"/><ref name="Bellware"/> Eleven out of the twelve jurors at the trial were white, and one juror referred to Jones using an ethnic slur.<ref name="ip"/><ref name="Bellware"/> One juror alleges another juror called for Jones to be [[lynched]] outside the courthouse.<ref name="Osborne"/> Jones and his family maintain that Jones is [[innocent]], stating that he was at home at the time of the crime.<ref name="Querry-Thompson"/><ref name="cbs1"/> Jordan served fifteen years for driving the getaway car in Howell's death, but has allegedly admitted to at least three others that he shot Howell and framed Jones.<ref name="Osborne"/><ref name="cbs1"/><ref name="Fortin"/><ref name="ip"/> Jordan was released in 2014.<ref name="Fortin"/> Jones' public defender at the time, David McKenzie, later acknowledged he gave ineffective counsel in a 2008 affidavit and detailed five major failures he made in Jones' trial.<ref name="Bellware"/>
Jones did not take the stand during the trial and was found guilty and sentenced to death in 2002.<ref name="Querry-Thompson"/><ref name="cbs1"/> Jones' [[co-defendant]], Christopher Jordan, cooperated with prosecutors and placed the blame on Jones.<ref name="Osborne"/> During the trial, Jones' defense team did not bring up his [[alibi]] on the night of the crime and did not have Jones' family members testify.<ref name="Querry-Thompson"/><ref name="ip"/><ref name="Bellware"/> Ten out of the twelve jurors at the trial were white, one Hispanic, and one African American. One juror reported 16 years after the trial that a juror referred to Jones using an ethnic slur.<ref name="ip"/><ref name="Bellware"/> One juror alleges another juror called for Jones to be [[lynched]] outside the courthouse.<ref name="Osborne"/> Jones and his family maintain that Jones is [[innocent]], stating that he was at home at the time of the crime.<ref name="Querry-Thompson"/><ref name="cbs1"/> Jordan served fifteen years for driving the getaway car in Howell's death, but has allegedly admitted to at least three others that he shot Howell and framed Jones.<ref name="Osborne"/><ref name="cbs1"/><ref name="Fortin"/><ref name="ip"/> Jordan was released in 2014.<ref name="Fortin"/> Jones' public defender at the time, David McKenzie, later acknowledged he gave ineffective counsel in a 2008 affidavit and detailed five major failures he made in Jones' trial.<ref name="Bellware"/>


==Post-conviction==
==Post-conviction==

Revision as of 21:44, 14 November 2021

This article is about the American man on death row. For other people with the same name, see Julius Jones (disambiguation).
Julius Jones
February 2018 mugshot of Julius Jones
Born
Julius Darius Jones

(1980-07-25) July 25, 1980 (age 43)
Oklahoma, U.S.
EducationJohn Marshall High School[1]
Criminal statusOn death row
ParentMadeline Davis-Jones
Conviction(s)Capital murder, one count
Criminal penaltyDeath
Imprisoned atOklahoma State Penitentiary

Julius Darius Jones (born July 25, 1980)[2] is an American man on death row in Oklahoma who was convicted of the July 1999 murder of businessman Paul Scott Howell. His case has received international attention due to claims of innocence and controversy surrounding his trial and conviction. Jones and his defense team maintain his innocence, arguing that he was at home when the murder occurred, and that his co-defendant, Christopher Jordan, is the true perpetrator of the crime. The family of Paul Howell maintain that Jones is guilty. Jones is scheduled for execution on November 18, 2021.[3]

Early life

Jones was born on July 25, 1980, in Oklahoma.[4] He was the second of three siblings and has one younger sister, Antoinette, and one older brother, Antonio.[5] He attended John Marshall High School in Oklahoma City, where he was a star basketball player.[1][6] Blake Griffin's father coached both Jones and his co-defendant, Christopher Jordan in basketball.[5] Jones won a partial academic scholarship to the University of Oklahoma.[5] Jones' family was not in poverty, but Jones committed several acts of larceny and petty theft in order to obtain things his family could not afford.[1][5] Jones became acquainted with Christopher Jordan, who later became his co-defendant in the 1999 crime.[1] Jones has said that he knew Jordan was not a good influence, but wanted to help him.[1]

Crime

Paul Howell, a businessman, was shot to death in the driveway of his parents’ home in Edmond, Oklahoma, on July, 28, 1999.[7][8] Howell's daughter, Rachel Howell, said she remembered sitting in their car in the driveway and seeing Jones approach the car. She claims she then saw Jones shoot her father in the head.[7][8] Investigators said the murderer left in Howell's GMC Suburban.[7][5] Witnesses at the time reported seeing a Black man with a red bandana and 1-2 inches of hair showing between his ear and wave cap, shoot Howell.[8][9][5] Jones had a shaved head at the time, but was ultimately arrested and indicted for Howell's murder.[7][8][9] According to Jones, the officer who arrested him called him an ethnic slur and dared him to run, implying the officer would shoot him if he did.[9][5] A DNA test linked Jones to a red bandanna that was found wrapped around the murder weapon.[6] Jones denied having a role in the car jacking that led to Howell's death.[1] He stated that Christopher Jordan spent the night at Jones' house on the evening of the murder and maintains that Jordan planted evidence framing Jones for the murder.[1][6]

Legal Proceedings

Jones did not take the stand during the trial and was found guilty and sentenced to death in 2002.[7][8] Jones' co-defendant, Christopher Jordan, cooperated with prosecutors and placed the blame on Jones.[1] During the trial, Jones' defense team did not bring up his alibi on the night of the crime and did not have Jones' family members testify.[7][9][5] Ten out of the twelve jurors at the trial were white, one Hispanic, and one African American. One juror reported 16 years after the trial that a juror referred to Jones using an ethnic slur.[9][5] One juror alleges another juror called for Jones to be lynched outside the courthouse.[1] Jones and his family maintain that Jones is innocent, stating that he was at home at the time of the crime.[7][8] Jordan served fifteen years for driving the getaway car in Howell's death, but has allegedly admitted to at least three others that he shot Howell and framed Jones.[1][8][6][9] Jordan was released in 2014.[6] Jones' public defender at the time, David McKenzie, later acknowledged he gave ineffective counsel in a 2008 affidavit and detailed five major failures he made in Jones' trial.[5]

Post-conviction

In April 2021, Jones wrote a letter to the parole board stating "I did not kill Mr. Howell. I did not participate in any way in his murder; and the first time I saw him was on television when his death was reported."[6] Bob Macy, the district attorney at the time, has had one-third of his death penalty convictions overturned due to prosecutorial misconduct and multiple people have been exonerated.[9][5] Oklahoma County is among the five worst counties in the U.S. in terms of wrongful capital convictions.[5]

On September 13, 2021, the Oklahoma Pardon and Parole Board held a commutation hearing and expressed doubt about Jones' guilt.[10] Four people testified that co-defendant Christopher Jordan admitted to the murder while in prison.[1][9] After several hours of testimony the board voted 3-1 in favor of commuting Jones' sentence to life in prison with the possibility of parole.[7][11] Board members Adam Luck, Kelly Doyle, and Larry Morris voted in favor of clemency and Richard Smothermon voted against clemency.[1] Board member Scott Williams recused himself from the vote due to an ongoing investigation of the board.[1] The Board voted again in October and received the same results.[1] The Board's decision was a recommendation for the Governor of Oklahoma, Kevin Stitt.[7] On November 1, 2021, Jones spoke before the Board at a clemency hearing and argued his innocence.[1]

Jones' attorney, along with other attorneys for people on death row, filed a request for a stay of execution.[12] The attorneys argued that they had an agreement with former Attorney General of Oklahoma, Michael J. Hunter, that no executions would take place while they awaited an upcoming trial in February.[12] The trial challenges whether Oklahoma’s execution protocol, a three-drug cocktail, is legal.[12] On October 27, 2021, the 10th Circuit Court of Appeals released a decision staying the executions of Jones and another man on death row, John Grant. The current attorney general, John M. O'Connor, appealed and asked the court to vacate the stay of executions.[12] The United States Supreme Court overturned the stay of executions for Jones and John Grant and Grant was executed on October 28, 2021.[13][14]

On November 3, 2021, the Oklahoma Legislative Black Caucus held a press conference asking Governor Stitt to grant Jones clemency.[15] Members of the caucus, including Jason Lowe and Monroe Nichols, met with Jones a few months prior to the press conference.[15]

On November 11, 2021, five Republican lawmakers, John Talley, Logan Phillips, Kevin McDugle, Garry Mize, and Preston Stinson released a joint statement asking Governor Stitt to accept the Oklahoma Pardon and Parole Board's clemency recommendation.[3][16] Mercedes Schlapp, Matt Schlapp, and the American Conservative Union also asked Stitt to grant Jones clemency.[17] More than 6.3 million people signed a change.org petition requesting that Jones is not executed.[9]

The Howell family has asked that the execution move forward.[16] Governor Stitt met separately with Howell's family and Jones' defense team, but has not met with the Jones family.[16]

In popular culture

In 2018, Jones was featured in the first season of The Last Defense, an American documentary series that explores and exposes flaws in the American justice system.[8] The episodes about Jones focused on evidence attorneys failed to present in court regarding Jones' co-defendant Christopher Jordan.[8] Since the documentary aired, Kim Kardashian and Stephen Curry have expressed support for Jones, and Kardashian visited Jones in prison.[8][5] Jones' story was also featured on a 2020 podcast episode featuring Kardashian and a 2021 episode of The Late Late Show with James Corden.[6] On July 15, 2020, Jones was featured on an episode of 20/20 titled The Last Defense: Julius Jones – A Special Edition of 20/20.[18]

See also

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o Osborne, Deon (November 1, 2021). "JULIUS JONES, FAMILY PLEAD FOR GOV. STITT TO ACCEPT HISTORIC CLEMENCY RECOMMENDATION". The Black Wall Street Times. Retrieved November 13, 2021.
  2. ^ "Oklahoma Department of Corrections OK Offender". doc.ok.gov. Retrieved November 13, 2021. Offender: Julius D. Jones | OK DOC#: 270147 | Birth Date: 7/25/1980
  3. ^ a b Weber, Andy (November 12, 2021). "Republican lawmakers urge Gov. Stitt to grant clemency for Julius Jones". KOCO News 5. Retrieved November 13, 2021.
  4. ^ Osborne, Deon (July 26, 2021). "SUPPORTERS CELEBRATE OKLA. DEATH ROW INMATE JULIUS JONES' 41ST BIRTHDAY AHEAD OF COMMUTATION HEARING". The Black Wall Street Times. Retrieved November 13, 2021.
  5. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m Bellware, Kim (March 5, 2021). "Can a decade-old witness confession help save Julius Jones from execution?". Washington Post. Retrieved November 14, 2021.
  6. ^ a b c d e f g Fortin, Jacey (September 16, 2021). "On Death Row Half His Life, Oklahoma Man May Be a Step Closer to Release". New York Times. Retrieved November 13, 2021.
  7. ^ a b c d e f g h i Querry-Thompson, K. (September 13, 2021). "Oklahoma Pardon and Parole Board votes to commute Julius Jones' death sentence". Oklahoma's News 4. Retrieved November 13, 2021.
  8. ^ a b c d e f g h i j "Oklahoma death row inmate gets one last chance to plead his case: "We are fighting for a man's life"". CBS. November 1, 2021. Retrieved November 13, 2021.
  9. ^ a b c d e f g h i "8 Facts About Julius Jones, Innocent on Death Row in Oklahoma". Innocence Project. September 1, 2021. Retrieved November 14, 2021.
  10. ^ "Oklahoma death row inmate Julius Jones set to be executed next week". CBS. November 11, 2021. Retrieved November 13, 2021.
  11. ^ Simmons, Rusty (October 26, 2021). "'Justice for Julius' Warriors show support for death-row inmate in Oklahoma". San Francisco Chronicle. Retrieved November 13, 2021.
  12. ^ a b c d Bruno, Jessica; Douglas, Kaylee; Querry-Thomspon, K.; Ogle, Katelyn; Raache, Hicham (October 27, 2021). "State of Oklahoma files appeal with U.S. Supreme Court to have stay of execution for John Grant vacated". Oklahoma's News 4. Retrieved November 13, 2021.
  13. ^ Bruno, Jessica; Douglas, Kaylee (October 28, 2021). "Oklahoma carries out first execution since 2015 with the death of John Grant following Supreme Court ruling". Oklahoma's News 4. Retrieved November 13, 2021.
  14. ^ Fleming, Thomas (November 12, 2021). "Former Oklahoma governor, attorney weigh in on governor's options ahead of Julius Jones decision". Oklahoma's News 4. Retrieved November 13, 2021.
  15. ^ a b Bruno, Jessica (November 3, 2021). "Oklahoma Legislative Black Caucus calling on Governor Stitt to grant Julius Jones clemency". Oklahoma's News 4. Retrieved November 13, 2021.
  16. ^ a b c Fleming, Thomas (November 11, 2021). "Republican lawmakers call for Governor Stitt to grant clemency for death row inmate Julius Jones one week before schedule execution". Oklahoma's News 4. Retrieved November 13, 2021.
  17. ^ Morris, Nate (November 12, 2021). "TRUMP WHITE HOUSE OFFICIAL CALLS ON STITT TO GRANT JULIUS JONES CLEMENCY". The Black Wall Street Times. Retrieved November 13, 2021.
  18. ^ "S42E29The Last Defense: Julius Jones – A Special Edition of 20/20". ABC 20/20. July 15, 2020. Retrieved November 14, 2021.
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