A decision from the Oklahoma Pardon and Parole Board recommends clemency for Tremane Wood, currently on Oklahoma’s death row and scheduled to receive lethal injection Thursday at the state penitentiary in McAlester, Oklahoma.
The recommendation was decided in a 3-2 vote by the Oklahoma Pardon and Parole Board, consisting of five members appointed by either the governor or the state’s top judicial official, according to CBS News affiliate KWTV. Oklahoma Governor Kevin Sitt will consider the recommendation as he weighs whether to grant or deny Wood’s clemency request, which would mean sparing him from execution and reducing his sentence to life in prison without the possibility of parole.
Wood, 46, faces execution for his conviction in the 2001 murder of Ronnie Wipf in Oklahoma City. Wood and his attorneys have repeatedly maintained his innocence in Wipf’s murder and suggested that Wood’s brother, Zjaiton Wood, was responsible for the killing while Wood only participated in the botched robbery that ultimately turned deadly. Before his death, Zjaiton Wood allegedly told multiple people that he was the one who committed the murder, said Tremane Wood’s attorney, Amanda Bass Castro Alves, according to the Associated Press.
“I’m not a monster. I’m not a killer. I never was and I never have been,” Wood said in video testimony shown during the recent hearing with the Pardon and Parole Board. “Not a day goes by in my life that I do not think about Ronnie and how much his mom and dad are suffering because they don’t have their son any more.”
Since last week’s clemency recommendation from the Pardon and Parole Board, advocates have been working to amplify Tremane’s case, and reinforce the Board’s vote for mercy, through media and social media.
Here’s how you can help:
- Use this Quick Click Link to send an email to Governor Stitt, asking him save to Tremane Wood from execution.
- Use the Tremane Wood Advocacy Toolkit to use guides to make calls, send emails, write letters, and spread the word on your social media channels. You can also find updated Talking Points Post Clemency Hearing
- Read and share the Huffington Post article about the case and efforts to save Tremane Wood’s life —>>> His Brother Admitted To A Murder. He Is Set To Be Executed For It.
If you are in or near Oklahoma City, there are events planned in the area:
- (Tuesday 11/11):
- Rally for Tremane’s Life @ 7PM – TBD
- (Wednesday 11/12):
- Prayer Vigil @ 7PM at Pastor Middendorf’s Church Community Center – 4400 NW Expressway Oklahoma City, OK 73116
- (Thursday 11/13):
- Join Vigil with OK-CADP (Oklahoma Coalition to Abolish the Death Penalty) – “Stop the Execution” – Oklahoma City
- Gathering in McAlester, OK to “Stop the Execution” – **Some people have been expressing interest in this, details TBD**
