Death Penalty Dropped Against Mumia Abu-Jamal

Prosecutors in Pennsylvania say they are dropping their attempts to put former journalist Mumia Abu-Jamal to death for allegedly killing a white police officer 30 years ago, reports the Associated Press. 

A former journalist, Abu-Jamal was convicted of shooting police officer Daniel Faulkner in 1981 and sentenced to death in 1982. Through the years, which he spent at a Pennsylvania prison, Mumia became a household name thanks to his radio broadcasts, books and celebrity supporters, including hip hop luminaries like Chuck D, Tupac, and Snoop Dogg.

Now 58, Abu-Jamal will instead serve a life sentence.