Houston County District Attorney Eric Edwards said he consented for Jessie James Askew Jr. to be released from his life sentence during an interview with The Telegraph on Friday, March, 13, 2026, in his office at the Houston County Superior Courthouse, 201 Perry Parkway in Perry, Ga.
Jesse Fraga
The Telegraph
A father who was sentenced to life without parole is one step away from being released after a rare legal attempt by the Houston County District Attorney’s Office.
This is the first time Houston County DA Eric Edwards has consented to modify someone’s sentence who was originally prosecuted by a former district attorney. An order of release is now pending approval from a judge.
“I can’t think of a case where I’ve ever gone back afterward and thought, ‘Yeah, I should have sought less time on that sentence,’” Edwards told The Telegraph Friday. “You know, it’s extremely rare, extremely rare.”
Jessie James Askew Jr. has served 28 years – more than half of his age – in prison, and is booked at Telfair State Prison, according to court records.
Askew was found guilty of an armed robbery where no one was injured in 1997 at Morrison’s Fresh Cooking in Warner Robins. He also was convicted of three prior nonviolent felonies.
“I would only tell people that crime doesn’t pay and to stay away from the street life,” Askew, 52, emailed The Telegraph on Feb. 9. “I would warn them about the pain and destruction that follows their choices.”
Framed photo of Jessie James Askew Jr. in his early 20s, wearing a jersey around 1996, a year before he committed an armed robbery in Warner Robins, Ga., then faced life in prison. Molly Askew
Georgia’s recidivist statutes allow the maximum possible sentence besides death for repeat offenders. So Kelly Burke, the Houston County DA in 1998, recommended Askew face life in prison without the possibility of parole, and thus, die in prison.
Burke said he regrets the sentence, calling it “unfair.” Askew’s co-defendant Fernando Jackson was found guilty of the same armed robbery, but only faced 10 years in prison and has been released because he pleaded guilty, whereas, Askew did not.
“I overreacted. When Jessie demanded a jury trial, I punished him for doing that,” Burke said on Jan. 29.
Former Houston Judicial Circuit district attorney Kelly Burke speaks to The Telegraph from his office on Thursday, Jan. 29, 2026, in Byron, Georgia. Burke was advocating for state legislation that would shorten life sentences for people like Jessie James Askew Jr., who Burke prosecuted against in 1997. Katie Tucker The Telegraph ‘Exhausted all his… rights’
Since the 67-year-old resigned from being DA to run for another office in 2010, Burke’s advocated for Askew’s release.
Askew requested a new trial in 1999, and again in 2014, then motioned to appeal his sentence in 2015, motioned to be resentenced in 2021 and motioned to appeal his sentence again that year. Burke testified as a witness to reduce his sentence in 2023.
But Askew, who often represented himself in court, was denied by a judge and parole board each time, according to court records.
“If he’s serving life without parole, the board has no authority to consider him,” said Steve Hayes, director of communications for the Georgia State Board of Pardons and Paroles.
Realistic drawing of Jessie James Askew Jr.’s appearance in 2026, according to his mother Molly Askew. Jessie Askew is incarcerated in Telfair State Prison in McRae-Helena, Ga. related to an armed robbery he committed in 1997. Molly Askew
Burke even helped propose Georgia House Bill 894, or the Georgia Second Look Act, which reached the House Judiciary Non-Civil Committee, but did not move further by March 6 – the deadline for a bill to pass out of its chamber to be considered in the legislative session.
“It’s uncommon. It’s the only (case) I’ve ever heard of Mr. Burke having a regret on,” Edwards said.
Burke recently approached Edwards about altering Askew’s sentence. Edwards also discussed Askew’s legal options outside of court last week with his lawyers, Michael Admirand and Kendell Long, who work for the Southern Center for Human Rights.
Admirand and Long confirmed they spoke with Edwards about Askew’s case last week, but declined The Telegraph’s request for an on-record interview.
Askew has exhausted all but one legal way to be released, according to Edwards.
“With someone who’s exhausted all his appellate rights and habeas corpus rights and all those courts having found that it was a legal sentence and no errors were committed justifying a new trial, the only avenue I’d know of would be consent from the prosecuting attorney, who is now me,” Edwards said.
He confirmed he signed a consent order that would modify Askew’s life without parole sentence to the amount of time he’s served in prison, resulting in his immediate release if signed by a judge.
Askew’s fate rests with Houston County Superior Court Judge G.E. “Bo” Adams, who will consider the order, Edwards said. Adams will consider it because he inherited the docket of the original sentencing judge George F. Nunn Jr. in 1997.
It’s unclear when Adams will rule on the order.
Why district attorney wants man released
Edwards said he believes Askew should be released, even though he was sentenced to life without parole, because people guilty of more heinous charges seldom face such harsh sentences.
Askew’s 28 years in prison amounts to three years more than the mandatory minimum sentence of an aggravated child molestation conviction, which is “a pretty stiff sentence,” Edwards said, as an example.
“I always contextualize things based on crimes against children,” he said.
Edwards also emphasized that nobody was injured in the 1997 armed robbery, and Askew’s previous felony convictions were nonviolent.
Burke’s contrition heavily impacted Edwards’ decision to sign his consent for Askew’s release.
“Weighing all the issues and thinking about the overcrowding of our prison system in this state, I just felt that if the original prosecutor was of that mind that 28 years in prison was enough for a crime where no one was harmed, then I didn’t have any reason to disagree with that,” Edwards said.
Jessie James Askew Jr. (center) smiles with his mother, father and daughter in 2020, while Askew was incarcerated at Telfair State Prison in McRae-Helena, Ga. Molly Askew
This story was originally published March 17, 2026 at 6:30 AM.