On September 25, 1990, in Jones, Georgia, 29-year-old Jacqueline Freeman, a Black woman, was killed by her brother-in-law, Keith Bo Tharpe. The killing followed a period of domestic turmoil after Tharpe’s wife had left him.

Tharpe was arrested, tried in Jones County, and in January 1991 a jury convicted him of malice murder and two counts of kidnapping with bodily injury; the jury sentenced him to death. Subsequent appeals raised claims that a white juror’s racially prejudiced statements had influenced the sentencing decision; those claims worked their way through state and federal courts and prompted at least one stay of execution to allow further review.

The case draws attention to the role of juror bias in capital cases and the legal hurdles that can follow such claims. If anyone knew Jacqueline Freeman or has information about the events surrounding September 25, 1990, please share what you know.