Ohio governor commutes inmate's death sentence to life in prison
by Reginald Fields, cleveland.comNovember 30th -0001
COLUMBUS, Ohio - Gov. John Kasich on Tuesday commuted the death sentence of a Mahoning County murderer to life in prison without parole.
Kasich cited the mental capacity of John Jeffrey Eley as his reason for granting leniency. Eley, 63, is the third death row inmate whose sentence Kasich has commuted since he took office in January 2011.
Eley was scheduled to die by injection on July 26 for the 1986 killing of Youngstown convenience store owner Ihsan Aydah, 28, which the governor called a "heinous act," but an act for which Eley is not fully responsible.
"In participating in the murder, John Jeffrey Eley, who has limited mental capacity, acted under the direction of another man who was later acquitted," the Republican governor said in a news release. "Without those factors it is doubtful that Eley would have committed this crime."
Kasich acknowledged that Eley was acting under the direction of Melvin Green, who walked free in part because Eley refused to testify against him, according to court records.
Kasich also noted that the Mahoning County prosecutor who tried Eley's case, Gary Van Brocklin, has also called for clemency.
"The combined weight of these facts leads me to commute Eley's sentence to life in prison without parole," Kasich said. "Murder under any circumstance is an atrocious act and this decision in no way diminishes that or the actions of Eley. I pray that the family and friends of Ihsan Aydah can find peace."
Eley's attorney, Vicki Werneke, said, "Gov. Kasich made the right decision to commute John Eley's sentence given the facts and circumstances surrounding the case."
Kasich previously commuted the sentences of two other death row inmates to life in prison. Shawn Hawkins won clemency in June 2011 after Kasich said it was "frustratingly unclear" what role he played in a double murder.
And in September 2011 the governor spared the life of killer Joseph Murphy, saying the death penalty was "not appropriate" given Murphy's "uniquely severe and sustained verbal, physical and sexual abuse from those who should have loved him" during his childhood.
Eley is the second inmate in as many months to see his death sentence put on hold or reversed because of concerns about his mental competence.
The Ohio Supreme Court last month indefinitely postponed the execution of Cleveland's Abdul Awkal days before he was scheduled to be executed.
The high court's decision came after Cuyahoga County Common Pleas Judge Stuart Friedman ruled that Awkal was mentally incompetent and unable to understand the connection between his crime -- fatally shooting his wife and her brother 20 years ago -- and his punishment.
Awkal killed the pair inside the old Lakeside Courthouse during a divorce and child custody dispute.
Original Page: http://www.cleveland.com/open/index.ssf/2012/07/ohio_governor_commutes_inmates.html
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