Parole Board Recommends Clemency For Three Serving Life Sentences
Last updated Thursday, April 3, 2008 8:54 PM CDT in News
By The Morning News
LITTLE ROCK - The state Parole Board on Thursday recommended executive clemency for three inmates serving life sentences for murder.
The board also recommended clemency for a rapist serving a 10-year sentence.
The four were among 12 inmates for which the board recommended clemency and 15 people recommended for pardon.
Bobby Charles Nelson, 55, was convicted in Pulaski County in the 1972 death of Raymond Tuck during a fight. In his application for clemency, Nelson wrote the slaying occurred when he was helping a friend in a fight. He said three other accomplices were each sentenced to 10 years in prison.
"I believe that the ends of justice have been served by me being incarcerated for over 36 years," Nelson wrote, "and because my co-defendant has been free for over 32 years.
Pulaski County Prosecutor Larry Jegley and Sheriff Doc Holladay both objected to the parole board's recommendation.
Also recommended for clemency Thursday was 75-year-old Enous O'Neal Jr., who was convicted in 1971 of first-degree murder in Phillips County. In his application for clemency, O'Neal said he was deer hunting at night when he shot at a deer but accidentally hit a man standing next to a car. He told the parole board he was sorry for the shooting and the victim was a longtime friend.
Jerry Sims, 53, was convicted of first-degree murder in 1984 after he gunned down a man during a bar fight at Stamps in Lafayette County. In his clemency application, Sims said he regretted the incident and has remorse for the victim and the victim's family.
Miller County Prosecutor Brent Haltom opposed the parole board's recommendation.
"I vehemently object to any possibility or consideration of a pardon or executive clemency for Jerry Sims," Haltom wrote in a letter to the Parole Board.
Hubert D. Corbin, 47, was convicted of rape in 2003 and sentenced to 10 years in prison. In his clemency application, he said the victim, who was a minor at the time of the crime, and her family now support his release.
Jefferson County Circuit Judge Berlin Jones and Prosecutor Steve Dalrymple both objected to a clemency recommendation for Corbin.
The Parole Board's recommendations will go to Gov. Mike Beebe after a 30-day comment period.
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MarkTheNarc wrote on Apr 4, 2008 7:25 AM: