Plea Deal Frees and Banishes Former Death Row Inmate From State

By Colleen Chen, NEWS 9

OKLAHOMA CITY -- A man twice convicted and sentenced to death for the murder of an Oklahoma City man is off of death row this week. A judge freed 46-year-old James T. Fisher Jr. on Monday after Fisher agreed to a plea deal with Oklahoma County prosecutors.

Perry Hudson, Fisher's attorney, said Fisher claimed innocence until he took a plea bargain.

"You can only plead guilty legally if you are guilty, so he is guilty in the eyes of the law," Hudson said.

Fisher had been convicted once and sentenced to death once in 1983 and again in 2005. Both convictions were overturned on appeal because it was determined Fisher had ineffective counsel during the trials. He was supposed to go to trial again in December.

Fisher has spent nearly 27 years as a death row inmate for killing Terry Gene Neal of Oklahoma City in December of 1982 by stabbing Neal in the neck with a broken wine bottle. On Monday, Fisher pleaded guilty to first-degree murder. He was sentenced to life with parole, but Fisher was given credit for time served and the judge suspended the rest of the sentence.

Neal's sister, Frances Holder, said the plea deal was a shock.

"I feel sick. He's going to do it again. He doesn't care, and I hope it's no one else's brother or son. I'm glad my mom is not alive to see this. I can't believe it," Holder said.

The plea deal banishes Fisher from returning to Oklahoma. He will also complete a program in Alabama to reintegrate him into society. The program can last anywhere from six months to three years. Although the victim's family is unhappy with the outcome, prosecutors said it was the best decision because winning another trial would have been difficult due to the age of the case.