William R

William R. Jones Jr. died at 12:04 a.m. at the Potosi Correctional Center.
Jones was convicted in the January 16, 1986 death of Stanley Albert. Jones maintained he shot Albert in self-defense when Albert made unwanted sexual advances. One of Jones' attorneys, Charlie Rogers, said Jones' version was supported by his subsequent diagnosis of ego dystonic-homosexuality, a discomfort with one's homosexual inclinations, along with borderline personality disorder.
Patrick Peters, a former Jackson County, said that while Jones claimed to be upset by Albert's sexual advances, Jones was in fact bisexual and living with a male lover.
The case has drawn attention in Europe since Jones married an Austrian woman in January 2001. They met over the Internet a year earlier.
Among those who asked Holden for clemency were the Austrian government and the 44-member Council of Europe, which said the execution would violate U.N. human rights resolutions. The European Parliament, meeting Tuesday in Strasbourg, signed and submitted a petition asking Holden to spare Jones' life.