Oklahoma Pardon and Parole Board recommends clemency for inmate Julius Jones, attorney says

The Oklahoma Pardon and Parole board has recommend clemency for death row inmate Julius Jones, attorneys for Jones said Monday. Jones, who was convicted in 1999 at the age of 19 for the murder of Paul Howell, has maintained that he was innocent and race played a role in his conviction. 

On October 27, Jones spoke publicly for the first time in over two decades at the hearing, according to CBS affiliate News 9. The families of Jones and Howell were both there, in a hearing that lasted over 3 hours. 

"I believe in death penalty cases there should be no doubt, and put simply, I have doubts in this case," the board's chairman said in September when he recommended Jones' sentence be commuted to life in prison rather than execution.