Clemency denied for Virgil Delano Presnell Jr.

ATLANTA — Following a meeting to receive information for or against clemency for condemned inmate Virgil Delano Presnell Jr., and after thoroughly considering all the facts and circumstances of the case, the State Board of Pardons and Paroles has denied clemency in the case.

Presnell is scheduled to be executed Tuesday at 7 p.m. at the Georgia Diagnostic and Classification Prison in Jackson.

Presnell was convicted by a jury of four crimes committed in 1976 against two girls, ages 8 and 10 years old. He was convicted of kidnapping and murdering the younger child and kidnapping with bodily injury and raping the older child. The jury imposed the death sentence.

The Superior Court of Cobb County issued the execution order for Presnell.

In Georgia, the Parole Board has the sole constitutional authority to grant clemency in a death penalty case. The board maintains a comprehensive file on each death row inmate. The file contains the history of the life of the condemned inmate, including the inmate’s criminal history and the circumstances of the crime committed resulting in the death sentence. Each board member reviews the information prior to the clemency meeting. The board’s decision follows the consideration of all information and material received during a clemency meeting.

Georgia DOC