Oklahoma Governor Halts Execution at the Last Moment

Oklahoma Governor Kevin Stitt has reduced a death penalty to a life sentence for a man who was found guilty of murder during a 2002 robbery....

Oklahoma Governor Kevin Stitt has reduced a death penalty to a life sentence for a man who was found guilty of murder during a 2002 robbery. However, the US is set to match its 2012 record of 43 executions this week.

Oklahoma's Governor Kevin Stitt on Thursday provided final mercy to death row inmate Tremane Wood, who was scheduled to be executed by lethal injection at the Oklahoma State Penitentiary in McAlester.

Wood's original sentence was reduced to a life prison term without the possibility of parole due to his involvement in an attempted armed robbery at a hotel in Oklahoma City, which resulted in the killing of Ronnie Wipf on January 1, 2002.

This is only the second instance in which Stitt, a member of the Republican party, has provided mercy during his almost seven years in power.

The Oklahoma Pardon and Parole Board approved the decision with a 3-2 vote on November 5.

"After carefully examining the facts and with thoughtful prayer, I have decided to accept the Pardon and Parole Board's suggestion to change Tremane Wood's sentence to life without the possibility of parole," Stitt stated in a release.

This measure demonstrates the same penalty his brother faced for their killing of an innocent young man, and guarantees a strict punishment that removes a violent criminal from society permanently.

Zjaiton, the older sibling of Wood, who took his own life while incarcerated in 2019, admitted to being the individual who stabbed Wipf during the unsuccessful robbery attempt in 2002.

What was the response from the defense and the prosecution to the commutation?

Amanda Bass Castro Alves, Wood's legal representative, stated that everyone involved in the clemency process was "deeply thankful" to Stitt.

"This choice," she stated, "respects the desires of Mr. Wipf's family and the injured individual, and we hope it brings them some sense of tranquility." Wipf was part of the Montana Hutterite community, a religious agricultural group that follows pacifist principles.

Both the present attorney general and one of the initial prosecutors in the case voiced their disappointment, with the latter stating, "Ronnie Wipf lies alone on a hill in the plains of Montana, and when his family goes to visit him, they ponder what could have been."

Inmate on death row: "I'm not a monster. I'm not a murderer"

The lawyer for Wood claimed that her client had faced an unjust trial during his conviction while speaking to the Pardon and Parole Board, highlighting what she described as a negligent, intoxicated defense attorney and a prosecution that concealed important details — including plea agreements with crucial witnesses.

The legal representatives of Wood made an unsuccessful attempt to have the US Supreme Court get involved in his case on those grounds.

Prosecutors depicted Wood as a hazardous individual linked to gang activities and prison-related offenses while opposing the granting of mercy.

Wood himself provided testimony through video, acknowledging responsibility for prison misconduct and his conviction, but insisting that he did not murder Wipf.

"I'm not a beast. I'm not a murderer. I never have been," Wood stated.

41 executions have taken place in the US this year, with numbers increasing

Sixteen men have faced the death penalty in Oklahoma while Stitt has been in power.

This year, the United States hasExecute 41 prisoners, with additional executions planned in the days ahead.

That is the highest level since 2012, when 43 executions took place. The maximum number of executions ever documented in the US was 98 in 1999.

A lethal injection is set to take place at a state prison in Florida later Thursday; and on Friday,South Carolina is set to perform an execution using a firing squad.— matching the 2012 count.

Florida has executed the highest numberexecutionsthis year, Alabama and Texas have each carried out five.

The death penalty is no longer in use in 23 out of the 50 U.S. states, and three additional states—California, Oregon, and Pennsylvania—have imposed a hold on its application.

For many years, President Donald Trump has strongly supported the death penalty and has urged for its broader application "for the most heinous crimes."

Edited by: Sean Sinico

Author: Jon Shelton (with AFP, AP)