Parole board declines to spare life of death row inmate

ATLANTA – Georgia’s parole board has declined to spare the life of a death row inmate who’s scheduled for execution Tuesday.

The State Board of Pardons and Paroles reached its decision Monday after holding a hearing to hear arguments for and against clemency for J.W. Ledford Jr.

Ledford, now 45, was convicted of murder in the January 1992 stabbing death of his neighbour, 73-year-old Dr. Harry Johnston, near his home in northwest Georgia.

The parole board is the only authority in Georgia with power to commute a death sentence. The board didn’t give a reason for denying clemency, which is standard.

Ledford’s lawyers had asked the parole board to spare his life, citing a rough childhood, substance abuse from an early age and intellectual disability.