A U.S. Supreme Court decison on Monday not to hear an appeal of an Oklahoma criminal case ends the debate as to whether the McGirt decision can be applied to overturn convictions occuring before the case was decided.

“McGirt is not retroactive. This is a major victory for the State of Oklahoma,” Attorney General John O’Connor said.

The Oklahoma Court of Criminal Appeals unanimously made that decision in an appeal in Parish v. Oklahoma.

Clifton Parish was convicted of second-degree murder in the 2010 beating and shooting death of Robert Strickland in Hugo.

Parish sought to have the U.S. Supreme Court throw out his conviction, arguing that McGirt is retroactive and the state court lacked jurisdiction to try his case.

His conviction is one of many convictions that will now stand, O’Conner said.

“This is an important victory for the safety of victims, families of victims, and the people of Oklahoma,” O’Connor said. “Victims and their families will not be required to relive their tragic experiences by testifying in new trials, or worse, seeing the perpetrators out in society.

“We are hopeful that this is the first step in having the McGirt decision overturned or clarified and limited. Even without retroactive application, McGirt has opened prison doors and let violent criminals go free.”

The Times & Free Press reached out to both the District Attorney’s Council and District Attorney Mike Fields for comments but had not heard back at press time Tuesday afternoon.