Tennessee has set an execution date of December 11, 2025 for Harold Nichols, who was convicted and sentenced to death for the 1988 murder of Karen Pulley.

Sign this petition - Petition delivery is December 8.

Tennessee should grant Mr. Nicholas’ request for life in prison without parole, as the judge erred in rejecting the Chattanooga DA’s recommendation to commute Mr. Nichols' death sentence in 2018. The prosecution agrees that death is not the appropriate punishment for Harold Nichols, and the mother of the victim in this case has offered her forgiveness.

Additional details are below the Virtual Sit-In info (Call Gov Bill Lee - see below).

• Read a recent news item about this case here, which details the forgiveness offered by the mother of the victim in this case.
• Tennesseans for Alternatives to the Death Penalty has a letter writing action here.
• Join the March4Mercy from Tennessee's death row to the state capitol on December 7, the Sunday prior to the scheduled execution.  Details & registration are at bit.ly/March4Mercy

Join the Virtual Sit In

Call Governor Lee at 615-741-2001 with the following message:

"Hi. My name is [your name]. I am calling to ask that Gov. Lee follows the teachings of his faith and intervene to stop the execution of Harold Nichols on December 11, 2025. Even the District Attorney of Chattagnooga believes that Mr. Nichols' death sentence should be commuted. Death is not the appropriate punishment for Mr. Nichols. We reject the suggestion that the death penalty serves victims - the mother of the victim forgives Harold Nichols. Thank you."

REGISTER FOR THE 12/11 EXECUTION VIGIL BEGINNING AT 9AM CT.

BACKGROUND (As shared by Tennesseans for Alternatives to the Death Penalty):

Following a childhood marred by physical and sexual abuse, Mr. Nichols was sentenced to death in 1990 for the rape and unpremeditated murder of Karen Pulley. He took responsibility for his actions, expressed deep remorse, and pleaded guilty to his crimes--knowing that he could receive a death sentence without any promise of leniency. He also took responsibility for a series of rapes that occurred after Ms. Pulley’s death.

During his sentencing hearing, Mr. Nichols expressed remorse and apologized to Karen Pulley's family. Immediately after sentencing, Ann Pulley, the victim’s mother, asked to meet with him. She offered him forgiveness and challenged him to earn it by changing his life. Later, she visited him in jail and presented him with a Bible, marked with her daughter's favorite verses. That Bible remains one of his most treasured possessions.

At the time of his trial in 1990, a sentence of Life Without Parole was not a sentencing option in Tennessee. Multiple jurors believed that a death sentence was necessary to keep Mr. Nichols in prison, but that based on Tennessee's history, he would never be executed. These jurors now oppose his execution and favor commutation.

Commuting his sentence would also be consistent with an agreement reached in 2018, when Hamilton County district attorneys agreed to resentence him to what was effectively LWOP. The judge unexpectedly reversed course at the last minute, refusing to accept the agreement.

For the past three decades, Mr. Nichols has spent every day of his incarceration living into the love and forgiveness that he has experienced through his Christian faith and through Ann Pulley. He is a man of deep faith, a role model, and mentor to others on death row. Executing him now accomplishes nothing.

Please sign the petition asking Governor Lee to do everything within his power to stop this execution, including issuing a stay, and seeking a path to clemency in the case.