HUNTSVILLE, Ala. (AP) — A jury has recommended a life-sentence for an Alabama man who killed his wife and 7-year-old son in 2013.

News outlets report a Madison County jury recommended the sentence Wednesday for 39-year-old Stephen Marc Stone. He was found guilty Tuesday of strangling 32-year-old Krista Stone and Zachary Stone.

The only sentencing options for a capital murder conviction are execution or life in prison without the possibility of parole. The jury voted 9-3 for prison.

County District Attorney Rob Broussard says he believes Stone deserves the death penalty. Defense attorney Larry Marsili says the life-sentence isn’t a free pass.

Alabama’s restriction on judge overrides of jury recommendations isn’t retroactive, so the judge in Stone’s case that began before the 2017 ban can still order him to be executed. The judge didn’t schedule his sentencing.