In the absence of gubernatorial action, Pennsylvania Secretary of Corrections John Wetzel on Monday signed a notice of execution for an Allegheny County man convicted of capital murder in the Jan. 2012 slaying of his estranged girlfriend, Karissa Kunco.
Jordan Alexander Clemons, 31, formerly of Mt. Washington, was convicted of capital murder for killing Kunco, 21, following a jury trial in 2015. Authorities said Clemons dumped Kunco’s body in a wooded area in Washington County after slashing her throat repeatedly.
Late last year, the U.S. Supreme Court declined to hear his appeal.
Wetzel’s order set March 13, 2020 as the date for Clemons’ execution.
That notice, however, may mean little.
Gov. Tom Wolf, who has the authority to block executions, declared a moratorium on capital punishment shortly after taking office in 2015. Wolf said he would block executions pending legislative action on a report on shortcomings in the state’s death penalty law.
Wetzel scheduled Clemons’ execution under the provisions of a law that gives the secretary 30 days to issue a notice of execution when the governor fails to sign a warrant of execution within a given time period.
