Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt on Thursday granted a last-minute pardon to death row convict Tremayne Wood, who was set to die by lethal injection at the Oklahoma State Penitentiary in McAlester.
Wood’s sentence was commuted to life in prison without parole for his role in an attempted armed robbery at an Oklahoma City hotel that ended with the murder of Ronnie Wipff on January 1, 2002.
It is only the second time Republican Stitt has granted clemency during his nearly seven years in office.
Oklahoma’s Pardon and Parole Board voted 3-2 in favor of the move on November 5.
“After a thorough review of the facts and prayerful consideration, I have decided to accept the Pardon and Parole Board’s recommendation to commute Tremaine Wood’s sentence to life without parole,” Stitt said in a statement.
“This action reflects the same sentence his brother received for the murder of an innocent young man and ensures a serious sentence that takes a violent criminal off the streets forever.”
Wood’s older brother Zejtin, who died by suicide in prison in 2019, confessed to stabbing Wipff to death during a failed 2002 robbery.
How did defense forces and prosecutors react to the change?
Wood’s legal attorney, Amanda Bass Castro Alves, said everyone involved in the clemency effort is “deeply grateful” to Stitt.
“This decision,” he said, “respects the wishes of Mr. Wipff’s family and the surviving victim and we hope it will bring them some measure of peace.” Wipp was a member of the Montana Hutterites, a religious farming community with pacifist beliefs.
The current Attorney General and one of the original prosecutors in the case both expressed dismay, with the latter saying, “Ronnie Wipff is buried on a desolate hill somewhere on the plains of Montana, and when his family visits him, they wonder what might have happened.”
Death row inmate: ‘I’m not a monster.’ “I am not a murderer”
Wood’s attorney said his client was the victim of an unfair trial when arguing before the Pardon and Parole Board at the time of his conviction, pointing out that she was a lazy, alcoholic defense attorney and a prosecutor who withheld important information – such as plea deals made with key witnesses.
Wood’s legal team unsuccessfully requested the US Supreme Court to intervene on his behalf on those grounds.
Prosecutors, arguing against clemency, portrayed Wood as a dangerous thug involved in gang and prison crime.
Wood himself testified via video, taking responsibility for prison misconduct and his sentence, but also said he did not kill Wipff.
Wood said, “I’m not a monster. I’m not a killer. I never have been.”
41 people were given death sentence in America this year and the number is increasing
A total of 16 people were executed in Oklahoma during Stitt’s tenure.
This year, America has sentenced 41 prisoners to death, with more people scheduled to be hanged in the coming days.
This is the highest since 2012, when 43 people were hanged. The highest number of executions ever recorded in the US was 98 in 1999.
He is scheduled to be executed by lethal injection at a state prison in Florida later Thursday; And on Friday, executions by firing squad will take place in South Carolina, equaling the number from 2012.
This year, maximum 15 people have been hanged in Florida, five each in Alabama and Texas.
The death penalty has been abolished in 23 of the 50 US states, with a moratorium in three more: California, Oregon, and Pennsylvania.
President Donald Trump has been a staunch supporter of the death penalty for decades and has called for expanding its use “for the worst crimes.”
Edited by: Shawn Sinico