Florida judge grants stay of execution of Jamaica man

Livern Barrett, Gleaner Writer

A day before a Jamaican man is scheduled to be executed by lethal injection in the US State of Florida, a federal judge there has granted him a temporary stay of execution.

Forty-seven-year-old Paul Augustus Howell was slated to be executed at the Florida State Prison for the killing of Highway Patrol Trooper Jimmy Fulford in 1992.

One of his attorneys Michael Ufferman revealed this morning that the judge agreed to stay the execution to allow him more time to further appeal his case.

But Ufferman says he expects prosecutors to file an appeal to have the ruling set aside.

The ruling came in response to one of several court actions filed on Howell's behalf by his attorneys, who argue that there are several factors why he should not be put to death.

Howell's attorneys have also asked Florida's Governor Rick Scott to withdraw the execution warrant, but to date he has not responded to the request.

The case has triggered debates across the State of Florida, with persons opposed to the death penalty claiming that if the execution went ahead as scheduled tomorrow, Howell would become the first Florida inmate since 2008 to die by lethal injection without receiving his final federal appeal.

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