Current:Home > MyEthermac|Mississippi attorney general asks state Supreme Court to set execution dates for 2 prisoners -Prime Capital Blueprint
Ethermac|Mississippi attorney general asks state Supreme Court to set execution dates for 2 prisoners
TrendPulse View
Date:2025-04-08 06:19:09
JACKSON,Ethermac Miss. (AP) — Mississippi Attorney General Lynn Fitch has asked the state Supreme Court court to set execution dates for two men on death row.
Fitch’s office filed motions Thursday that asked the court to schedule executions for Willie Jerome Manning and Robert Simon Jr.
Manning, now 55, was convicted in 1994 on two counts of capital murder in the December 1992 killings of Mississippi State University students Jon Steckler and Tiffany Miller in Oktibbeha County. Simon, 60, and another man were convicted in the 1990 Quitman County slayings of a family of four.
Manning and Simon were close to being executed more than a decade ago, only to have stays issued by the courts.
In 2013, shortly before Manning was scheduled to be executed, the U.S. Justice Department said there had been errors in FBI agents’ testimony about ballistics tests and hair analysis in the case. Manning’s attorneys asked the Mississippi Supreme Court to stop the lethal injection, and justices voted 8-1 to delay the execution to allow the testing of evidence.
Manning’s attorneys said they hoped DNA testing would exonerate their client, who has maintained his innocence. In 2014, they sent a rape kit, fingernail scrapings and other items to a laboratory. In 2022, a majority of state Supreme Court justices wrote that Manning received “allegedly inconclusive results” after six years of fingerprint analysis and DNA testing.
Manning’s attorneys asked an Oktibbeha County circuit judge for permission to send items to a more specialized lab. The judge denied that request, and the ruling was upheld by the Mississippi Supreme Court.
Krissy Nobile, Manning’s attorney and the director of the Mississippi Office of Capital Post-Conviction Counsel, did not immediately respond to a phone message and an email requesting comment Friday.
Simon was just hours away from execution in May 2011 when a federal appeals court ordered a stay to ruling on a mental disability claim, the Northeast Mississippi Daily Journal reported. The claim was later rejected.
An attorney listed for Simon, Johnnie E. Walls Jr., did not immediately respond to a phone message Friday.
Fitch’s separate motions called for the Mississippi Supreme Court to set the execution dates within the next 30 days. The motions say “no legal impediment exists” and since both Manning and Simon have “exhausted all state and federal remedies, this court should set an execution date.”
The motions were still pending before the court on Friday.
veryGood! (275)
Related
- Chuck Scarborough signs off: Hoda Kotb, Al Roker tribute legendary New York anchor
- Savannah Bananas announce 2024 Banana Ball World Tour schedule, cruise
- Lebanese army rescues over 100 migrants whose boat ran into trouble in the Mediterranean
- Mortgage rates haven't been this high since 2000
- Charges tied to China weigh on GM in Q4, but profit and revenue top expectations
- AP Week in Pictures: Latin America and Caribbean
- Jason Derulo Deeply Offended by Defamatory Claims in Emaza Gibson's Sexual Harassment Lawsuit
- ‘It was just despair’: Abortion bans leave doctors uncertain about care - even in emergencies
- The Daily Money: Spending more on holiday travel?
- Goshdarnit, 'The Golden Bachelor' is actually really good
Ranking
- Tree trimmer dead after getting caught in wood chipper at Florida town hall
- Colorado funeral home with ‘green’ burials under investigation after improperly stored bodies found
- Gas prices are falling -- and analysts expect them to drop much further
- Marching bands have been struggling with extreme heat. Here's how they're adjusting
- Bill Belichick's salary at North Carolina: School releases football coach's contract details
- North Korea provides Russia artillery for the Ukraine war as U.S. hands Kyiv ammunition seized from Iran
- What’s streaming now: Drake, ‘Fair Play,’ Assassin’s Creed Mirage and William Friedkin’s last film
- Ancient gold treasures depicting Norse gods unearthed in Norway: A very special find
Recommendation
Bodycam footage shows high
TikToker Alix Earle Shares How She Overcame Eating Disorder Battle
An aid group says artillery fire killed 11 and injured 90 in a Sudanese city
Dick Butkus wasn't just a Chicago Bears legend. He became a busy actor after football.
Jorge Ramos reveals his final day with 'Noticiero Univision': 'It's been quite a ride'
Myanmar’s top court declines to hear Suu Kyi’s special appeals in abuse of power and bribery cases
How Love Is Blind's Milton Johnson Really Feels About Lydia Gonzalez & Uche Okoroha's Relationship
Many Americans don't believe in organized religion. But they believe in a higher power, poll finds