NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- Attorneys for Tennessee death row inmate Harold Wayne Nichols are asking the governor to convert his sentence to life imprisonment with just a month until his scheduled execution date.

In asking for clemency from Republican Gov. Bill Lee, they point out that Nichols confessed to the 1988 rape and murder of Karen Pulley, a 21-year-old student at Chattanooga State University, as well as a series of other rapes.

"Wayne's early taking of responsibility sets him apart from most others on death row. In fact, he would be the first person to be executed for a crime he pleaded guilty to since Tennessee re-enacted the death penalty in 1978," the petition states.

Clemency essentially asks for an act of mercy by the governor, who has the power to unilaterally commute a death sen

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