OKLAHOMA CITY — Oklahoma Attorney General John O’Connor has asked the Court of Criminal Appeals to set execution dates for seven death-row inmates, including Julius Jones.
The action comes after the state put the death penalty on hold following the 2014 botched execution of Clayton Lockett, the 2015 execution of Charles Warner using the wrong drug, a review of the lethal-injection protocol and litigation.
“These inmates’ appeals have lasted between 13 and 36 years in courts,” O’Connor said, adding that it is his job to enforce state law.
“Our thoughts remain with the families and loved ones of the victims of all death row inmates,” he said. “They have endured the lengthy appeals process while waiting decades for justice for horrific crimes their loved ones suffered. Further delay will only perpetuate that injustice.”
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O’Connor asked that Jones’ execution date be set for Oct. 28.
Jones, who has waged a public relations campaign claiming innocence, is set for a Sept. 13 commutation hearing before the Pardon and Parole Board. However, with O’Connor seeking an execution date, that could change to a clemency hearing at a later date, said Tom Bates, Oklahoma Pardon and Parole Board director.
The board has scheduled a meeting for next week to discuss the potential resumption of executions and the scheduling of clemency hearings.
Jones was convicted of the 1999 murder of Edmond businessman Paul Howell.
O’Connor asked the court to set a Feb. 10 execution date for James Allen Coddington, who was sentenced to death for the 1997 killing of Albert Hale in Oklahoma County.
He also requested that a Dec. 30 execution date be set for Donald Anthony Grant, who was sentenced to death for the 2001 murders of Del City motel workers Brenda McElyea and Suzette Smith.
An Oct. 7 date was requested for John Marion Grant, who was sentenced for the 1998 killing of Gay Carter, a prison kitchen worker at the Dick Connor Correctional Center in Hominy.
A Dec. 9 execution date was requested for Wade Greely Lay, sentenced to death for the 2004 killing of a Tulsa security guard, Kenny Anderson.
The court was also asked to set a Jan. 20 execution date for Gilbert Ray Postelle, who was convicted of killing four people in 2005 outside a trailer in Del City. He received the death penalty for two of the murders.
A execution date of Nov. 18 was requested for Bigler Jobe Stouffer, who was sentenced to death for the 1985 killing of Putnam City teacher Linda Reaves.
Earlier this month, 26 Oklahoma death-row inmates challenging the constitutionality of the state’s lethal-injection protocol won the right to take the case to trial. Those who didn’t state an alternative method were dropped from the case.
Richard Glossip was among those allowed to proceed. He was twice sentenced to death for the 1997 murder of Barry Van Treese, who owned the Oklahoma City hotel where Glossip worked as a resident manager.
Like Jones, Glossip and his supporters have waged a public relations campaign claiming his innocence.
Dale Baich, an Arizona assistant federal defender who represents Jones and worked on the Oklahoma lethal-injection case, said that given the checkered history and the unresolved questions about the constitutionality of the state’s execution protocol that are pending before the federal district court, Oklahoma should not move forward with any executions at this time.
“To allow executions to proceed when there is a chance the court could find a constitutionally unacceptable risk that a person could suffer because of the drug combination used is just plain wrong,” Baich said.
Featured video: Why Oklahoma executions are on hold
Photos: Oklahoma death-row inmates
Marlon Harmon

Name: Marlon Harmon
Birthdate: 07/12/1980
Offense: First-degree murder
County Convicted: Oklahoma
Conviction date: 07/02/2008
On death row since: 07/14/2008. Click here to read more. He has exhausted his court appeals. His execution is set for Dec. 5, 2024.
Alfred Mitchell

Name: Alfred Mitchell
Birthdate: 12/23/1972
Offense: First-degree murder
County Convicted: Oklahoma
Conviction date: 07/10/1992
On death row since: 7/15/1992. Click here to read more. He has exhausted his court appeals. His execution is set for Oct. 3, 2024.
Anthony Sanchez

Name: Anthony Sanchez
Birthdate: 11/01/1978
Offense: First-degree murder
County Convicted: Cleveland
Conviction date: 06/06/2006
On death row since: 6/7/2006. He has exhausted his court appeals. His execution is set for Sept. 21, 2023.
Benjamin Cole

Name: Benjamin Cole Sr.
Birthdate: 04/08/1955
Offense: First-degree murder
County Convicted: Rogers
Conviction date: 12/08/2004
On death row since:Â 12/27/2004. He has exhausted his court appeals and has an execution date set for Oct. 20, 2022.
Carlos Cuesta-Rodriguez

Name: Carlos Cuesta-Rodriguez
Birthdate: 10/04/1955
Offense: First-degree murder
County Convicted: Oklahoma
Conviction date: 08/15/2007
On death row since: 8/20/2007. He has exhausted his court appeals. His execution is set for June 6, 2024.
Emmanuel Littlejohn

Name: Emmanuel Littlejohn
Birthdate: 11/09/1971
Offense: First-degree murder
County Convicted: Oklahoma
Conviction date: 11/23/1994
On death row since: 11/30/1994. He has exhausted his court appeals. His execution is set for Nov. 2, 2023.
James Pavatt

Name: James Pavatt
Birthdate: 11/10/1953
Offense: First-degree murder
County Convicted: Oklahoma
Conviction date: 10/21/2003
Death row rulings: Put on death row in 2003, Pavatt had his death sentence overturned in 2017. A federal court overturned that ruling, reinstating Pavatt's death sentence on June 27, 2019. His appeals have been exhausted. His execution is set for July 11, 2024.
James Ryder

Name: James Ryder
Birthdate: 03/30/1962
Offense: First-degree murder
County Convicted: Pittsburg
Conviction date: 06/21/2000
On death row since:  6/23/2000. He has exhausted his court appeals. His execution is set for Feb. 1, 2024.
Jemaine Cannon

Name: Jemaine Cannon
Birthdate: 11/13/1971
Offense: First-degree murder
County Convicted: Tulsa
Conviction date: 03/26/1995
On death row since: 4/8/1996. He has exhausted his court appeals. His execution is set for July 20, 2023.
John Fitzgerald Hanson

Name:Â John Fitzgerald Hanson
Offense:Â First-degree murder
County convicted:Â Tulsa
Conviction date: 05/23/2001, 01/24/2006
On death row since:Â 2002. He has exhausted his court appeals and has an execution date set for Dec. 15, 2022. Because he remains in federal custody, and the current administration has established a moratorium on the death penalty, the Bureau of Prisons has said it will not release Hanson to the state for execution.
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Kendrick Simpson

Name: Kendrick Simpson
Birthdate: 10/02/1980
Offense: First-degree murder, two death sentences
County Convicted: Oklahoma
Conviction date: 10/26/2007
On death row since: 11/5/2007. His execution is set for March 7, 2024.
Kevin Underwood

Name: Kevin Underwood
Birthdate: 12/19/1979
Offense: First-degree murder
County Convicted: Cleveland
Conviction date: 04/03/2008
On death row since: 04/07/2008. His execution is set for Dec. 7, 2023.
Michael D. Smith

Name: Michael D. Smith
Birthdate: 06/24/1982
Offense: First-degree murder, two death sentences
County Convicted: Oklahoma
Conviction date: 10/14/2003
On death row since: 10/20/2003. He has exhausted his court appeals. His execution is set for April 4, 2024.
Phillip Hancock

Name: Phillip Hancock
Birthdate: 02/15/1964
Offense: First-degree murder, two death sentences
County Convicted: Oklahoma
Conviction date: 10/25/2004
On death row since: 11/01/2004. He has exhausted his court appeals. His execution is set for Nov. 30, 2023.
Raymond E. Johnson

Name: Raymond Johnson
Birthdate: 03/25/1974
Offense: First-degree murder, two death sentences
County Convicted: Tulsa
Conviction date: 07/28/2009
On death row since:Â 08/10/2009. His execution is set for May 2, 2024.
Richard Fairchild

Name: Richard Fairchild
Birthdate: 11/17/1959
Offense: First-degree murder
County Convicted: Oklahoma
Conviction date: 01/08/1995
On death row since: 02/12/1996. After he exhausted his court appeals, he was executed Nov. 17, 2022.
Richard Glossip

Name: Richard Glossip
Birthdate: 02/09/1953
Offense:Â First-degree murder, two death sentences
County Convicted: Oklahoma
Conviction date: 06/01/1998, 08/27/2004
On death row since: 08/31/1998. He has exhausted his court appeals and has had his execution date moved multiple times to allow time for the Oklahoma Court of Criminal Appeals to address pending legal proceedings. Glossip is currently set to be executed May 18, 2023.
Richard Rojem

Name: Richard Rojem Jr.
Birthdate: 12/19/1957
Offense: First-degree murder
County Convicted: Washington
Conviction date: 07/15/1985
On death row since: 07/15/1985. He has exhausted his court appeals. His execution is set for Oct. 5, 2023.
Ricky Malone

Name: Ricky Malone
Birthdate: 06/10/1974
Offense: First-degree murder
County Convicted: Comanche
Conviction date: 06/16/2005
On death row since: 06/20/2005. SCOTUS denied certiorari 10/7/2019.
Scott Eizember

Name: Scott Eizember
Birthdate: Â 01/10/1961
Offense: First-degree murder
County Convicted: Canadian
Conviction date: 03/24/2005
On death row since:Â 03/28/2005. He has exhausted his court appeals and has an execution date set Jan. 12, 2023.
Termane Wood

Name: Termane Wood
Birthdate: 10/09/1979
Offense: First-degree murder
County Convicted: Oklahoma
Conviction date: 05/07/2004
On death row since: 05/17/2004. He has exhausted his appeals. His execution is set for Feb. 8, 2024.
Wade Lay

Name: Wade Lay
Birthdate: 02/28/1961
Offense: First-degree murder
County Convicted: Tulsa
Conviction date: 10/24/2005
On death row since: 10/31/2005. He has exhausted his appeals. His execution is set for June 6, 2024.
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Wendell Grissom

Name: Wendell Grissom
Birthdate: 10/11/1968
Offense: First-degree murder
County Convicted: Blaine
Conviction date: 06/17/2008
On death row since: 06/30/2008. His execution is set for Jan. 11, 2024.