A man in Oklahoma is scheduled to be executed by lethal injection on Thursday morning despite conflicting evidence of his guilt.

Emmanuel Littlejohn, 52, is being executed for his role in the shooting death of a store owner during a robbery in Oklahoma City in 1992. If executed, Littlejohn would be the third inmate executed by the state this year.

The execution of Littlejohn, who was 20 years old at the time of the crime, is scheduled for 10 a.m. local time.

During the robbery, store owner Kenneth Meers, 31, was shot in the face as he tried to defend himself. Although Littlejohn admitted his involvement in the robbery, he insisted that his accomplice Glenn Bethany pulled the trigger. Bethany was sentenced to life in prison without parole, while Littlejohn was sentenced to death.

“I committed a robbery that had devastating consequences,” Littlejohn said during the hearing. “But, I repeat, I did not kill Mr. Meers.”

Littlejohn’s case has raised questions due to conflicting evidence. Some witnesses pointed to Bethany as the shooter. His legal team argued against his execution, citing “inconsistent prosecutions” in his case. His lawyers also mentioned Littlejohn’s difficult childhood and underdeveloped brain at the time of the crime.

His team emphasized his personal development in prison, where he became a positive role model for his family.

“He was young and stupid,” Littlejohn’s mother, Ceily Mason, told KFOR. “He’s grown and older and deserves a chance.”

Several jurors admitted that they had mistakenly voted for the death penalty because they misunderstood the implications of a life sentence without parole.

During a hearing last month, the Oklahoma Board of Pardons and Parole recommended that the state’s governor, Kevin Stitt, spare Littlejohn’s life by a 3-2 vote.

The decision to grant clemency rests with Stitt, who has granted clemency only once during his tenure. In 2021, the governor commuted the sentence of Julius Jones, convicted of the 1999 murder of Paul Howell, to life without the possibility of parole just hours before his execution.

But it looks like an uphill battle for Littlejohn. Oklahoma’s Republican Attorney General Gentner Drummond said he would continue to argue against a pardon for the governor, calling Littlejohn a “violent and manipulative killer.”

Littlejohn has expressed remorse for the robbery and asked for forgiveness from the victim’s family, who remain in favor of his execution. The family described Meers as a pillar of the community, and his brother Bill Meers expressed that he could not forgive Littlejohn for taking his brother’s life, according to local news outlet Oklahoma Voice.

Death penalty opponents, including Reverend Jeff Hood, are supporting Littlejohn’s case and expressing concern that it is not yet clear whether he is the actual shooter.

In recent days, numerous executions have taken place across the country. On Tuesday, Marcellus Williams (55) and Travis Mullis (38) were executed in Missouri and Texas respectively. Alan Miller (59) is also scheduled to be executed in Texas on Thursday.

Last week, Khalil Divine Black Sun Allah was executed in South Carolina, just days after the prosecution’s key witness testified that he had lied at trial and that the state was executing an innocent man.