Monday, May 24, 2021

Julius Jones: Oklahoma: Commutation Hearing: Paper reveals that he will be barred from participating because of two prison infractions he allegedly committed in 2020...(One allegation): "Prison officials also gave Jones a misconduct in April 2020 for an unauthorized conference call he placed two months earlier, Baich wrote. Baich said Jones called his sister at a rally in Tulsa, and she placed him on speaker phone so he could talk to the assembled crowd “to thank those who were present for their support.” Baich wrote that he believes “the timing of the investigation into Mr. Jones’s phone usage is suspect” and he believes Jones “was targeted (by DOC) for retaliatory action.”

BACKGROUND: "From letter  NBA superstar Trae Young to governor and parole board: I and so many other people have been called to raise concerns regarding Julius Jones’ case because of the many obvious ways in which the legal system failed him. Julius’ co-defendant, who testified against him, changed his story no fewer than six times when interviewed by the police. However, Julius’s attorneys, who lacked death penalty experience and were woefully unprepared, failed to cross-examine the co-defendant regarding his inconsistencies. They did not mention that Julius’ co-defendant had bragged to fellow inmates that he had committed the homicide, not Julius. Nor did they inform jurors that Julius did not meet the description of the shooter provided by the sole eye witness. Julius’ attorneys also failed to present evidence that Julius was home with his family the night of the murder. Finally, the prosecution used a scientifically discredited bullet analysis, presented by an analyst who pled guilty for giving false testimony only months after Julius’s trial."
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PASSAGE OF THE DAY: (The other allegation): "Jones, who is housed by himself in a prison cell in the Oklahoma State Penitentiary in McAlester, was alleged to have a cell phone charger in his cell on March 6, 2020, according to a letter Baich sent to Oklahoma Department of Corrections Director Scott Crowe. Prison records state the charger was “hidden in some arts and crafts items.” The document stated Jones refused to sign the misconduct paperwork and that he denied having a cell phone charger. A later evidence review from a hearing officer who reviews allegations of prisoner misconduct referred to the offense as “possession of cell phone paraphernalia” and wrote that the evidence was a “Black cell phone charging cord.” Baich said in the letter that Jones had been removed from his cell that day, strip-searched, and placed “semi-naked” in a shower while his property was confiscated. Jones was not found to have a cell phone in his cell, Baich said in a subsequent letter to Bates. “He was immediately placed in a maximum security cell for several days without access to a phone — which meant that he was also prevented from placing legal calls,” Baich wrote. Prison officials eventually found Jones guilty of the offense and he was sanctioned with 90 days of no visitation, no canteen access and no telephone calls in order “to deter any future negative behavior,” according to the disciplinary hearing report. Baich sought video of Jones being removed from his cell as well as a photograph of the cell phone charger. He said Gary Elliott, DOC’s general counsel, responded in an email with an “unidentifiable … giant, black-and-white photocopy of a photograph” and neglected to send video of Jones being removed from his cell."

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PASSAGE TWO OF THE DAY: "Jones’ attorney, Dale Baich, said he was not aware of a Pardon and Parole Board rule that would keep maximum security prisoners from appearing via video conference during their hearings. And Jones’ next hearing for the Oklahoma Pardon and Parole Board to consider commuting his death sentence is on hold until at least September. The hearing has been delayed for several months as the board puts in place new rules for an “Enhanced Stage Two” commutation hearing. The Pardon and Parole Board voted 3 to 1 to pass Jones to the second stage of the commutation process in February."

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STORY: "Concerns, allegations will keep Jones from appearing at hearing," by  Reporter Dylan Goforth,  published by The Frontier (Enid News and Eagle) on May 23, 2021.

GIST: "Julius Jones will be barred from participating in the second stage of his commutation hearing because of two prison infractions he allegedly committed in 2020, according to records reviewed by The Frontier.

Oklahoma Pardon and Parole Board executive director Tom Bates also said prisoners in maximum security prisons are barred from making “personal appearances” at their hearings, a rule that would seemingly keep all future death row prisoners from making appearances before the board.

“This is for logistical and safety reasons and is a policy with which the Department of Corrections concurs,” Bates wrote.

Jones’ attorney, Dale Baich, said he was not aware of a Pardon and Parole Board rule that would keep maximum security prisoners from appearing via video conference during their hearings.

And Jones’ next hearing for the Oklahoma Pardon and Parole Board to consider commuting his death sentence is on hold until at least September. The hearing has been delayed for several months as the board puts in place new rules for an “Enhanced Stage Two” commutation hearing. The Pardon and Parole Board voted 3 to 1 to pass Jones to the second stage of the commutation process in February.

Jones received two citations for misconduct in prison in 2020, Bates said in a recent letter to Baich.

Pardon and Parole Board rules bar prisoners who receive misconducts after requesting a commutation from from taking part in the second stage of their hearing. Jones’ commutation application was filed in October 2019.

The Frontier asked the Oklahoma Department of Corrections for copies of the misconduct reports, but has not yet received them. However, the misconduct reports are filed as attachments in a letter Baich sent to Bates earlier this month.

Jones, who is housed by himself in a prison cell in the Oklahoma State Penitentiary in McAlester, was alleged to have a cell phone charger in his cell on March 6, 2020, according to a letter Baich sent to Oklahoma Department of Corrections Director Scott Crowe. Prison records state the charger was “hidden in some arts and crafts items.”

The document stated Jones refused to sign the misconduct paperwork and that he denied having a cell phone charger.

A later evidence review from a hearing officer who reviews allegations of prisoner misconduct referred to the offense as “possession of cell phone paraphernalia” and wrote that the evidence was a “Black cell phone charging cord.”

Baich said in the letter that Jones had been removed from his cell that day, strip-searched, and placed “semi-naked” in a shower while his property was confiscated.

Jones was not found to have a cell phone in his cell, Baich said in a subsequent letter to Bates.

“He was immediately placed in a maximum security cell for several days without access to a phone — which meant that he was also prevented from placing legal calls,” Baich wrote.

Prison officials eventually found Jones guilty of the offense and he was sanctioned with 90 days of no visitation, no canteen access and no telephone calls in order “to deter any future negative behavior,” according to the disciplinary hearing report.

Baich sought video of Jones being removed from his cell as well as a photograph of the cell phone charger. He said Gary Elliott, DOC’s general counsel, responded in an email with an “unidentifiable … giant, black-and-white photocopy of a photograph” and neglected to send video of Jones being removed from his cell.

Prison officials also gave Jones a misconduct in April 2020 for an unauthorized conference call he placed two months earlier, Baich wrote. Baich said Jones called his sister at a rally in Tulsa, and she placed him on speaker phone so he could talk to the assembled crowd “to thank those who were present for their support.”

Baich wrote that he believes “the timing of the investigation into Mr. Jones’s phone usage is suspect” and he believes Jones “was targeted (by DOC) for retaliatory action.”

Baich said there’s no DOC rule against using prison phones to call someone on a prisoner’s authorized phone list and “that person’s subsequent use of their phone’s speakerphone function.”

“The absence of any such policy makes good sense,” Baich wrote, “since a prisoner would otherwise risk being written up every time he called a family member who subsequently placed him on speakerphone.”

The September date Bates mentioned in his letter is because the board, which typically only spends a few minutes discussing a case during the final stage of a commutation hearing, wants more time to consider death row cases.

Death row prisoners previously only appeared before the board for clemency hearings once an execution date is set in their case. But last summer, the board learned that death row prisoners could appear before the board to request a commutation.

Board members determined their existing rules “were inadequate for considering” death row cases, Bates wrote, so they adopted new rules that allowed for “expanded speaking times” if necessary.

But the board can’t vote on expanding those hearings for death row cases until the meeting Sept. 13-15, Bates wrote, because the rules are “currently under review” by legislators and Gov. Kevin Stitt."

The entire story can be read at:


PUBLISHER'S NOTE: I am monitoring this case/issue. Keep your eye on the Charles Smith Blog for reports on developments. The Toronto Star, my previous employer for more than twenty incredible years, has put considerable effort into exposing the harm caused by Dr. Charles Smith and his protectors - and into pushing for reform of Ontario's forensic pediatric pathology system. The Star has a "topic"  section which focuses on recent stories related to Dr. Charles Smith. It can be found at: http://www.thestar.com/topic/charlessmith. Information on "The Charles Smith Blog Award"- and its nomination process - can be found at: http://smithforensic.blogspot.com/2011/05/charles-smith-blog-award-nominations.html Please send any comments or information on other cases and issues of interest to the readers of this blog to: hlevy15@gmail.com.  Harold Levy: Publisher: The Charles Smith Blog;
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FINAL WORD:  (Applicable to all of our wrongful conviction cases):  "Whenever there is a wrongful conviction, it exposes errors in our criminal legal system, and we hope that this case — and lessons from it — can prevent future injustices."
Lawyer Radha Natarajan:
Executive Director: New England Innocence Project;
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FINAL, FINAL WORD: "Since its inception, the Innocence Project has pushed the criminal legal system to confront and correct the laws and policies that cause and contribute to wrongful convictions.   They never shied away from the hard cases — the ones involving eyewitness identifications, confessions, and bite marks. Instead, in the course of presenting scientific evidence of innocence, they’ve exposed the unreliability of evidence that was, for centuries, deemed untouchable." So true!
Christina Swarns: Executive Director: The Innocence Project;: