JACK ALDERMAN SCHEDULED FOR EXECUTION ON SEPTEMBER 16, 2008 - ACT NOW! Jack Alderman is the longest serving prisoner on death row in the United States. Sentenced to death in June 1975 for the murder of his wife, Jack has been on death row in Georgia for over 34 years and is scheduled to die by lethal injection on Tuesday, September 16, 2008 at 7:00 p.m. John Brown, a neighbor and former colleague of Jack's, confessed to killing Jack's wife, Barbara Jean, and staging an accident in an attempt to cover up the crime. Brown claimed that he and Jack killed Barbara Jean together and that Jack promised to pay him for his role in the killing. There was no forensic evidence and Jack was convicted on just one man's word, the word of a man who was admittedly drunk and high on drugs the night of the murder. According to the District Attorney who prosecuted Jack, "he structured the entire case around [John Brown's testimony]" and Brown's testimony "is the case" against Mr. Alderman. Even worse, it was later revealed that Brown made a deal with prosecutors to implicate Jack in the crime. Two of the jurors have since affirmed that they would never have voted to execute Jack had the prosecutors acknowledged the existence of the deal with Brown, and five jurors have now urged that Jack's life be spared. Both Jack Alderman and John Brown were sentenced to death, but Brown later pled guilty in return for a prison sentence. He was freed after serving only 12 years and went on to terrorize and molest girlfriends, their children and stepchildren, and other young girls and boys. Jack, however, has always maintained his innocence. In 1985, he declined the opportunity to have his sentence commuted to life in return for a guilty plea; he said that he could not confess to a crime that he did not commit. During his 34 years on death row, Jack Alderman has been a peacemaker within the prison community, and has become well respected by his fellow prisoners, guards, and even the prison administration. Last October, Jack received a stay of execution while a decision on the constitutionality of lethal injection, the method of execution utilized by the state of Georgia, was pending before the United States Supreme Court. Following the Court's decision earlier this year that lethal injection does not constitute cruel and unusual punishment, executions resumed across the country, and a death warrant was issued for Jack. Jack's lawyers have filed a petition to present evidence at an executive hearing before the Georgia Board of Pardons and Paroles. Thus far, the Board has not agreed to hold a hearing and now Jack is within days of his scheduled execution. Hundreds of individuals, faith-based organizations, and even those supporting capital punishment, have advocated for a hearing for Jack. We ask that you join these individuals and others like them, and urge the Board of Pardons and Paroles to grant Jack Alderman a hearing. To show your support, please include your full name and email address below. Thank you.

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