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Thu August 21, 2008
Clemency rejected for Oklahoma man convicted of 11-year-old niece's murder

By Julie Bisbee
Staff Writer
The Pardon and Parole Board denied clemency for a man convicted for the murder of his 11-year-old niece.

Members of the board unanimously denied clemency for Jesse James Cummings, 52. Cummings was convicted in a Coal County court for the 1991 murder of his sister and 11-year-old niece.


Prosecutors said Cummings had two wives and convinced them to kill Judy Ann Moody Mayo and her daughter, Melissa. Cummings is scheduled to die by lethal injection on Sept. 25.

Prosecutors said Cummings killed his 11-year-old niece after having sex with the child. The bodies of the mother and child were dumped in two separate locations in rural southeastern Oklahoma. Cummings was convicted in 1994 with the death of Mayo and Melissa. His two wives, who were also involved in the murder, have also been jailed.

Juanita Cummings, 39, is serving a life sentence for second degree murder. Sherry Cummings, 40, is serving time after being convicted of allowing child abuse and two counts of being an accessory after the fact.

The court of criminal appeals threw out Jesse James Cummings conviction in the shooting death of his sister because there was no testimony linking him to the murder, outside of testimony from accomplices. The court upheld his conviction in the death of his niece Melissa Moody.

Jesse Cummings, who has maintained his innocence for the past 14 years, says his wives conspired against him. Cummings said he was married to both women and that they women had an "open relationship."

The women have said they feared for their lives and for their children if they did not follow Jesse Cummings' orders. Jesse Cummings told board members today that he was in Oklahoma City at the time of the murders taking his father to the hospital.

The case went unsolved until 1994, when Juanita Cummings went to police and confessed to killing Mayo. After that, Sherry Cummings went to police. However, there was no physical evidence linking Jesse Cummings to the crime, and tests on the home where his sister was believed to be shot did not turn up any conclusive blood samples. DNA testing was not used in the case against Jesse Cummings because the Melissa's body was so decomposed when it was found that physical evidence wasn't recoverable.

Jesse Cummings' attorney said his client was offered a plea bargain, but he wanted his case to go before the jury because he was innocent.

"Nothing or no one can tie Jesse to this crime," Cummings attorney, Chris Eulberg. "I ask that he not be denied clemency because he didn't want to lie to the court."

Assistant Attorney General Robert Whittaker argued the state's case, calling Jesse Cummings a misogynistic, sociopath monster.

"Oklahoma has no interest in executing an innocent person," Whittaker said. "In this case we strongly recommend it (execution.)"