Gov. Mike DeWine to decide fate of Ohio death row inmate claiming innocence

Key Points:

• The Ohio Parole Board recommended commuting Tyrone Noling's death sentence to life imprisonment with the possibility of parole as early as 2029, after he spent 30 years on death row claiming innocence in the 1990 murders of an elderly couple.
• Noling's case has gained high-profile support from celebrities like Kim Kardashian and actors Hilarie Burton and Jeffrey Dean Morgan, and now rests with Governor Mike DeWine, who has expressed opposition to the death penalty despite previously sponsoring its reinstatement.
• The parole board's recommendation included one member supporting a full pardon, five favoring commutation, and two opposing; Noling rejects life without parole and seeks exoneration.
• Evidence challenges Noling's conviction, including retracted witness statements, lack of physical evidence, alternative suspects identified by the Ohio Innocence Project, and doubts raised by a former sheriff who reviewed the case.
• Prosecutors maintain Noling's guilt based on testimony from former gang members, but ongoing legal and public scrutiny highlight potential wrongful conviction issues in this decades-old case.