Quinn: Early Release Rules Followed `Precisely’

Gov. Pat Quinn says Illinois prison officials followed the law "precisely'' when they granted early release to an inmate now facing a murder charge.

The Associated Press reported Tuesday that Joshua A. Jones was released in May five months early from a drug-dealing sentence.

The 28-year-old is now charged with murder in the Aug. 17 shooting death of a Decatur man.

Quinn said Wednesday that the law in the Jones case "was carried out to the letter.''

The Democrat signed a law last year that reinstated early release for non-violent inmates who behave behind bars. He suspended an earlier program after a 2009 scandal.

The new program started in March.

Jones served 19 months of a four-year term for selling heroin, crack cocaine and hydrocodone.