Board Denies Clemency for Death Row Inmate Whose Co-Defendant Received Life Sentence

The Georgia Board of Pardons and Paroles announced on March 31 that it had denied clemency to Joshua Bishop. Bishop had asked that his death sentence be reduced to life without parole because his co-defendant, who was nearly twice Bishop’s age at the time of the crime, and had a history of violent crime while Bishop did not, was given a plea deal resulting in a life sentence. Bishop is scheduled to be executed in Georgia on March 31. Seven of the twelve jurors who voted to sentence Bishop to death now support a sentence reduction for a variety of reasons. Juror Jeremy Foston said he initially, “was leaning toward a life sentence because Mr. Bishop had a terrible childhood and was just a young man.” Others said they were confused by instructions that the jury had to be unanimous. Juror Jim Ray wrote, “[w]e really struggled with our decision. We eventually changed our vote to a death sentence partly because we were told we had to be unanimous and those [two jurors] who wanted the death penalty were very firm in their conviction and let us know they would not change their minds.” The belief that Bishop’s co-defendant, Mark Braxley, would also face the possibility of a death sentence influenced some jurors’ decisions. They say they would have sentenced Bishop to life without parole if they knew Braxley had received a plea deal for a life sentence. Juror Jeremy Foston wrote, “We wanted to make sure Mr. Braxley would get the same punishment as Mr. Bishop. We even sent a note out asking if we could know what would happen to him. The prosecutor told us not to worry about Mr. Braxley, and that he would have his day in court. We assumed that meant he would have the same treatment as Mr. Bishop.”

(“Application for clemency to the Georgia Board of Pardons and Paroles on behalf of Joshua Bishop,” Counsel for Joshua Bishop, March 23, 2016; R. Cook, “Attorneys for Joshua Bishop file appeal as execution day approaches,” Atlanta Journal-Constitution, March 29, 2016; “Clemency for Bishop denied,” Union-Recorder, March 31, 2016.) See Arbitrariness.