Oklahoma panel denies clemency for man convicted of woman’s 1995 stabbing death

By SEAN MURPHY
Associated Press

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — A state panel in Oklahoma has denied recommending clemency for a man convicted of stabbing a Tulsa woman to death with a butcher knife in 1995. Wednesday’s decision by the Pardon and Parole Board clears the way for 51-year-old Jemaine Cannon to be executed on July 20. Cannon was convicted of the 1995 killing of 20-year-old Sharonda Clark after he had escaped from a prison work center in southwest Oklahoma. At the time, Cannon was serving time after being convicted of a violent assault of another woman. Cannon’s defense attorneys claim he killed Clark in self-defense, but the board and appellate courts have rejected that argument.