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A Georgia judge has put an execution scheduled for Wednesday on hold, saying the condemned inmate is entitled to a hearing on whether his sentence should be reduced under a new state law that allows victims of abuse to have their sentences reconsidered.
Stacey Humphreys, 53, was convicted of malice murder and other crimes in the 2003 killings of 33-year-old Cyndi Williams and 21-year-old Lori Brown. He had been scheduled to die at 7 p.m. EDT at the state prison near Jackson.
But Cobb County Superior Court Judge Tyler Browning issued a stay of execution late Tuesday to allow for a hearing provided for under the Georgia Survivor Justice Act. The law directs judges to resentence people who are in prison and to impose shorter penalties during sentencing if the person can tie their crimes to abuse they suffered.
A lawyer for the state told the judge that if he ordered a stay, they would immediately appeal in hopes of keeping the execution on track for Wednesday evening.
During a hearing Tuesday, Humphreys’ lawyer, Brian Kammer, told Cobb County Superior Court Judge Tyler Browning that his client is a survivor of severe family violence and childhood abuse and “was severely damaged by this abuse and violence and it contributed significantly to his criminal behavior.”
Browning wrote that if an appellate court rules before the scheduled execution time that Humphreys isn’t entitled to a hearing, he would consider lifting the stay so the execution could proceed.
A parole board denied clemency for Humphreys on Tuesday, CBS News Atlanta reports.
Humphreys’ execution was put on hold previously due to questions over the clemency process.
The two women Humphreys killed were working as real estate agents for a new subdivision in the Atlanta suburb of Powder Springs. He entered the sales office in a model home around midday on Nov. 3, 2003, and forced them to strip naked and give him their bank PINs before fatally shooting them, according to evidence presented at trial.
Humphreys withdrew more than $3,000 from the women’s bank accounts, according to court filings. He told police after his arrest that he had recently taken out some high-interest payday loans and needed money for a payment on his truck.
Witnesses told police they saw a man fitting Humphreys’ description at the sales office and a vehicle in the parking lot that matched his black Dodge Durango. Police zeroed in on Humphreys and tried to question him at his Dunwoody home days later. He fled and was arrested in Wisconsin after leading police on a high-speed chase.
