OKLAHOMA CITY — An attorney for death row inmates challenging the state’s lethal injection process said execution dates should be stricken in light of a recent federal appeals court ruling.
On Friday, a federal court of appeals ordered that the Oklahoma death row prisoners be reinstated to the long-running federal lawsuit.
Oklahoma County convicted killer Julius Jones was among the six. Jones received the death sentence for the 1999 killing of Paul Howell, who was shot and killed in Edmond in front of his two daughters and sister.
Jones has an Oct. 26 clemency hearing and a Nov. 18 execution date.
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the 10th Circuit ruled the district court erred in dismissing those plaintiffs while the lawsuit remained pending.
The district court ruled on Aug. 11 that the prisoners failed to specify an alternative execution method for their executions.
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After some of the plaintiffs were dismissed, the Oklahoma Attorney General’s office sought and was granted execution dates for them from the Oklahoma Court of Criminal Appeals.
In May 2020, the Oklahoma Attorney General told the court and plaintiffs that he would not seek execution dates for any party in the lawsuit while it was pending in district court.
“Now that the plaintiffs are back in the lawsuit, we expect the Attorney General to keep his promise and ask the Oklahoma Court of Criminal Appeals to vacate the scheduled execution dates,” said Dale Baich, one of the attorneys representing the inmates.
Oklahoma Attorney General John O’Connor’s office on Monday had no comment.
Osage County killer John Marion Grant is the first set to die on Oct. 28. He was sentenced to die for the 1998 stabbing death of Gay Carter, a correctional worker. The Pardon and Parole Board declined to recommend him for clemency.
Oklahoma put executions on hold after the 2014 botched execution of Clayton Lockett and the execution in 2015 of Charles Warner using the wrong drug.
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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 June 27.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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. A stay has been granted in his execution.
John Fitzgerald Hanson
Name: John Fitzgerald Hanson
Offense: First-degree murder
County convicted: Tulsa
Conviction date: 05/23/2001, 01/24/2006
On death row since: 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.
Read more: Appeal rejected in 1999 murder of retired Tulsa banker Mary Bowles
Federal inmate set for state execution denied transfer to Oklahoma custody
Oklahoma corrections director on execution: 'Not pleasant to watch, but ... not inhumane'
Richard Glossip
Name: Richard Glossip
Birthdate: 02/09/1953
Offense: 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 was set to be executed May 18, 2023, before a Supreme Court stay was put in place.
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.
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.
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.
Clarence Goode Jr.
Name: Clarence Goode Jr.
Birthdate: 04/22/1976
Offense: First-degree murder, three death sentences
County Convicted: Tulsa
Conviction date: 12/10/2007
On death row since: 1/14/2008. He has exhausted his appeals. His execution is set for June 6, 2024.
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.
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: 08/10/2009. His execution is set for May 2, 2024.
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.
Ronson Bush
Name: Ronson Bush
Birthdate: 05/15/1977
Offense: First-degree murder
County Convicted: Grady
Conviction date: 10/29/2009
On death row since: 11/13/2009. Click here to read more. His execution is set for Sept. 5, 2024.
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