Stacey Ian Humphreys (GDOC)
ATLANTA - A Georgia judge on Monday ordered a temporary pause to a December execution that had already been put on hold, ruling that questions about the state’s clemency process must be resolved before Stacey Humphreys’ death sentence can move forward.
What we know:
Humphreys, 52, had been scheduled for execution Dec. 17, but the lethal injection was halted just days before it was to be carried out.
In an order filed Monday, Fulton County Superior Court Judge Robert McBurney said the court must first address concerns raised by Humphreys’ attorneys about potential conflicts of interest on the Georgia parole board, which is responsible for deciding clemency requests.
"Pressing ‘pause’ on the execution machinery until we answer the non-frivolous question raised by Petitioner concerning the proper composition of the Board for his clemency hearing is the correct course of action," McBurney wrote.
His lawyers argue that two members of the parole board should be barred from participating in his clemency hearing because of prior involvement in the case.
One board member, Kimberly McCoy, previously worked as a victim advocate in the Cobb County district attorney’s office at the time of Humphreys’ trial and was assigned to assist victims in the case, according to the defense.
Another member, Wayne Bennett, was sheriff in Glynn County, where the trial was moved because of pretrial publicity. Humphreys’ lawyers say Bennett oversaw security for jurors and for Humphreys during the proceedings.
The backstory:
Humphreys was convicted of malice murder and other crimes in the 2003 shooting deaths of Cyndi Williams, 33, and Lori Brown, 21, at the Cobb County real estate office where they worked northwest of Atlanta.
Earlier this month, the defense filed a petition asking a judge to order both board members to recuse themselves from considering Humphreys’ clemency petition.
McBurney said in his order that Humphreys is entitled to have the conflict of interest issue fully researched and argued so that a parole board free of conflicts can decide his clemency request.
What's next:
The judge ordered attorneys for both sides to file additional legal briefs by Jan. 19.
The Source: The details in this article come from court records and previous FOX 5 Atlanta reporting. The Associated Press contributed to this report.