Stitt issues rare clemency to death row inmate

Oklahoma Death Row inmate Tremane Wood had already eaten his last meal of fried catfish, chocolate ice cream and a Dr. Pepper when he was told Gov. Kevin Stitt had intervened.

Stitt, who supports the death penalty, granted clemency, changing the death sentence Wood had received to life in prison without the possibility of parole. 

“This action reflects the same pun­ish­ment his broth­er received for their mur­der of an inno­cent young man and ensures a severe pun­ish­ment that keeps a vio­lent offend­er off the streets for­ev­er,” said Gov. Stitt.  “In Oklahoma, we will con­tin­ue to hold account­able those who com­mit vio­lent crimes, deliv­er­ing jus­tice, safe­guard­ing our com­mu­ni­ties, and respect­ing the rule of law,”

Oklahoma has the nation’s highest per capita rate for executions, according to the Oklahoma Policy Institute. Wood is the second person in the United States to have a death sentence commuted by a state governor in 2025, in a rare reprieve. 

Wood was sentenced to death in 2004 for his involvement in a 2002 botched robbery that left 19-year-old Ronnie Wipf dead in an Oklahoma City motel. Wood’s defence does not deny his involvement in the theft; however, the defence maintains that it was Wood’s older brother and partner in the robbery, Zjaiton Wood, who killed Wipf. 

Zjaiton Wood was convicted of first-degree murder without the possibility of parole, while his brother was sentenced to death for the same crime. 

Following the 2004 decision, there has been significant controversy surrounding the case. His legal team filed post-conviction petitions to both the Oklahoma Court of Criminal Appeals and the U.S. Supreme Court, both of which were denied. 

The brothers were convicted for the 2002 murder of 19-year-old Ronnie Wipf outside an Oklahoma City Ramada Inn.    

Tremane Wood’s attorney, Amanda Bass Castro Alves, also petitioned the Oklahoma Pardon and Parole Board to consider changing the sentence from death to life without parole, which resulted in a formal hearing on November 6, 2025. 

During the hearing, Castro Alves argued that Tremane Wood had an incompetent trial attorney who was drinking heavily and was overburdened with other cases. Two other defendants have previously been granted relief from their sentences due to the trial attorneys’ ineffectiveness.

She also alleged that Zjaiton Wood admitted to being the one who actually murdered Wipf, before taking his own life in prison in 2019. Her final central argument was that trial prosecutors unfairly concealed from jurors the benefits that witnesses received by giving their testimony.

In a 3-2 vote, the Oklahoma Pardon and Parole Board recommended clemency for Tremane Wood despite opposition from Attorney General Gentner Drummond, arguing that he remained a threat to others.

But State Sen. Nikki Nice (D, Oklahoma City) said clemency was justified. 

“We know there are deep inequalities in how the death penalty is applied in Oklahoma. Race and lack of resources are major factors in who lives and who dies,” Nice said  “There were troubling circumstances in this case, and I’m grateful the governor accepted the recommendation of the Pardon and Parole Board to grant clemency. Advocacy works, and the prayers of Tremane’s family have been answered.” 

Before today, Gov. Stitt has granted clemency only once during his time in office. In 2021, he granted clemency to Julius Jones; however, this is rare. Sixteen men have been executed, with four having had clemency cases denied during Stitt’s time as Governor. 

“I…thank Governor Stitt for saving the life of Tremane Wood by accepting the recommendation of the Pardon and Parole Board to grant clemency,” said State Sen. Regina Goodwin (D, Tulsa). Adding that the mother of victim Ronnie Wipf also asked for Tremane’s life to be spared. 

“I pray for the fam­i­ly of Ronnie Wipf and for the sur­viv­ing vic­tim, Arnie; they are mod­els of Christian for­give­ness and love,” Stitt said in his statement.