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Dear Friends, 

Julius Jones has been on Oklahoma's death row for approximately 20 years, and over the years, troubling questions have emerged about his case. In July 2018, Academy Award winner, Viola Davis, produced this story on ABC's,  "The Last Defense" .

The Oklahoma Conference of Churches holds firmly to our  Theological Statement in Opposition to the Death Penalty , not only because we believe  "we should not usurp the authority of God in rendering final and absolute judgment" , but because we know that human flaws have led to countless executions of wrongfully convicted individuals throughout the United States. Influencers from across the country -- including attorney and author of "Just Mercy" , Bryan Stevenson , and socialite and businesswoman, Kim Kardashian -- are joining efforts to support Julius Jones' clemency application, which is currently before the Oklahoma Pardon and Parole Board.

We would like to invite our community to become aware of the troubling issues regarding Julius Jones' case here , and get involved with the #justiceforjulius campaign. Our board president, Rev. James Dunbar, has helped lead this effort for over a year. You can watch him speak about the case here . The campaign is asking faith leaders, churches, and faith communities to:
  • Sign on to the '100 Oklahoma Faith Leaders in Support of Julius Jones' letter (contact Cece Jones-Davis or Rev. James Dunbar)
  • Organize a congregational letter-writing campaign to the OK Pardon and Parole Board and Governor Kevin Stitt in early 2020 (see template)
  • Engage on social media by posting commentary regarding #justiceforjulius. Also, 'follow', 'like', and 'share' on social media platforms (FB/Instagram: @justiceforjulius | Twitter: @justice4julius)
  • Take Action for National Julius Jones Petition Day on Dec. 11th

Change.org and national influencers are partnering with the #justiceforjulius campaign to get 150,000 petition signatures before the end of the year. You can help by sharing the graphics in this email on your social media between Sunday, Dec. 8 and Wednesday, Dec. 11th. Please contact Cece Jones-Davis ( cece@cecejonesdavis.com ) or James Dunbar ( jdunbar@rocketmail.com ) for more information, and to get further involved with #justiceforjulius. You may also subscribe to the email list at www.justiceforjulius.com to receive updates.

This is an opportunity to enact change! Please learn about Julius and consider joining the effort.

Sincerely,
Rev. Shannon Fleck