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One of the two men convicted in the 1993 murder of James Jordan, Michael Jordan's father, will be released from prison in three years, North Carolina officials announced on Tuesday. Larry Demery was granted parole and is expected to be released in August of 2023, the Associated Press reported.

Greg Thomas, spokesman for the N.C. Department of Public Safety, said the grating of parole is in part due to Demery enrolling in a program that provides scholastic and vocational help to inmates in preparation for life after prison. 

James Jordan was shot while sleeping in his car in Lumberton, North Carolina 27 years ago. At the trial, Demery claimed that his classmate, Daniel Green, was the shooter but Green still says he is innocent.

Green testified that he was with Demery at a cookout when Demery left to take part in a drug deal. He claims that when Demery returned, he was visibly trembling and asked him to help get rid of James Jordan's body. Green, who admitted in the trial that he helped put James Jordan's body in a swamp in McColl, South Carolina, said Demery mistook James Jordan for someone connected to the drug deal. The two, both 18, drove around in the victims car for days after the killing.

James Jordan's body was found in the swamp 11 days after the shooting. Dental records had to be used to confirm his identity. 

Demery pleaded guilty to first-degree murder, armed robbery and conspiracy to commit robbery in 1995 and was sentenced by a jury to a life sentence plus 40 years. When an error was found in the sentencing in 2008, it was changed to only a life sentence, which made him eligible for parole.

Green was given life in prison for murder during the commission of a robbery and 10 years for conspiracy to commit robbery by a judge. He is still seeking his release.