Debra White and Deon Brown wrote birthday messages to Missouri death row inmate Reginald Clemons at his 39th birthday celebration held Monday, August 30 at GYA Art Galley.
The Justice for Reggie Campaign is encouraging supporters to complete a clemency petition or circulate clemency petitions. A form can be downloaded from www.justiceforreggie.com.
The campaign has continued to ask Gov. Jay Nixon to grant clemency to Clemons, even after the Missouri Supreme Court cancelled Clemons’ execution date and referred his case to an independent judge.
Special Master Michael Manners has extended the period of his judicial review indefinitely after forsensic evidence germane to Clemons’ case suddenly emerged during the newly opened discovery phase.
Clemons remains sentenced to death for murder as an accomplice in 1993. The case has been frequently cited as an example of prosecutorial conduct and other civil rights violations against the three African-American defendants accused alongside Daniel Winfrey, who turned state’s evidence and is free today on parole.
Marlin Gray was executed by the State of Missouri in 2005, and Antonio Richardson’s death sentence was commuted to life without parole because the death sentence was issued by a judge after the jury was hung up in the sentencing phase.
Most recently, in May Amnesty International joined the chorus of Clemons supporters calling for clemency and a new trial.
Manners will issue a recommendation to the Missouri Supreme Court at the conclusion of the Special Master process. Since the court is considering a Writ of Habeas Corpus, it has wide latitude on how to rule, even releasing Clemons for time served.
