A death row inmate snacked out on a 'last meal' from KFC and McDonald's hours before he was supposed to die, before getting a last-minute reprieve and having his life spared.
41-year-old Julius Jones was due to be executed via lethal injection at the state penitentiary in Oklahoma on Thursday after the appeals to spare his life were rejected.
The state's governor also refused to keep him from execution, leaving him facing death and provided with a last meal, or so he thought.
However, at the last second his sentence was commuted to life without the possibility of parole by that same governor, Kevin Stitt.
Jones was imprisoned in 1999 for the murder of insurer Paul Howell.
Howell had taken his sister and young daughters out for ice cream when he was robbed and killed by a masked gunman.
Since he was sentenced for the crime, Jones has spent more than half his life on death row.
However, before he was spared from death, he had already been served his - supposedly - final meal.
According to the Oklahoma Department of Corrections, Jones had enjoyed food ordered in from KFC, McDonald's, and Pizza Hut.
Apparently he had two KFC sandwiches with lettuce, tomato, and mayo, as well as a large portion of fries from McDonald's and one medium meat lovers pizza from Pizza Hut.
Jones has always maintained his innocence and that has drawn his supporters to suggest that the death penalty should not be applied.
Howell's family, on the other hand, are steadfast in their belief that it was Jones who pulled the trigger that day.
After the sentence was commuted, Jones' lawyer Amanda Bass said that the state had avoided an 'irreparable mistake'.
She said: "Governor Stitt took an important step today towards restoring public faith in the criminal justice system by ensuring that Oklahoma does not execute an innocent man.
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"While we had hoped the Governor would adopt the Board's recommendation in full by commuting Julius's sentence to life with the possibility of parole in light of the overwhelming evidence of Julius's innocence, we are grateful that the Governor has prevented an irreparable mistake."
Jones' case has attracted quite a bit of attention in recent times, even drawing noted anti-death penalty advocate Kim Kardashian in.
Kim said that she spent 'most of [her] day' on the phone to Jones yesterday, adding: "He also wanted me to pass a few messages along that were really important to him.
"The most important is that you have to always make sure you are doing the right thing.
"Julius was hanging out with the wrong crowd and that landed him in the position he's in today."
Featured Image Credit: Oklahoma Department of CorrectionsTopics: Food, Death Row, Food And Drink, US News, KFC, Prison, McDonald's