Oklahoma death row inmate who requested firing squad executed by lethal injection
3 years, 2 months ago

Oklahoma death row inmate who requested firing squad executed by lethal injection

CNN  

CNN — An Oklahoma death row inmate who had requested execution by firing squad was executed by lethal injection on Thursday, according to the state Department of Corrections. Grant and another death row inmate, Gilbert Postelle, had asked a federal judge to intervene and allow their executions by firing squad rather than lethal injection. Grant was sentenced to death for the 2001 murders of Brenda McElyea and Felecia Suzette Smith, according to court documents filed to the Supreme Court by the Oklahoma attorney general. Testimony submitted by the plaintiffs in court filings from a “board-certified anesthesiologist and a board-certified pain medicine specialist” alleged that execution by firing squad – not Oklahoma’s process of lethal injection – is appropriate because “firing squad will reliably cause a death that will be quick and virtually painless.” On November 30, 2021, Oklahoma’s Pardon and Parole Board voted 4-1 against recommending clemency for Grant.

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History of this topic

Oklahoma executes the man who killed a woman 20 years ago in a home invasion and robbery
1 week, 3 days ago

Oklahoma executes the man who killed a woman 20 years ago in a home invasion and robbery

Associated Press  

McALESTER, Okla. — An Oklahoma man who fatally shot a woman during a home invasion and robbery 20 years ago apologized to the victim’s family before he was executed Thursday, remorse a woman wounded in the attack said was sincere but came too late. “I apologize to all of you that I’ve hurt,” Grissom, bearded and wearing a grey prison …

Arizona GOP lawmakers advance firing squad execution proposal
1 month, 1 week ago

Arizona GOP lawmakers advance firing squad execution proposal

Raw Story  

by Jerod MacDonald-Evoy, Arizona Mirror February 18, 2025 A Republican proposal that would amend the Arizona Constitution to execute prisoners by firing squad instead of lethal injection passed its first hurdle Tuesday. Duncan concluded that, although lethal injection appears to be painless and humane, the reality is that it is “fundamentally unreliable, unworkable and unacceptably prone to errors.” Duncan also …

Oklahoma wants federal inmate transferred so he can be put to death
2 months ago

Oklahoma wants federal inmate transferred so he can be put to death

Associated Press  

OKLAHOMA CITY — Oklahoma’s top prosecutor asked the federal Bureau of Prisons to transfer an inmate to state custody so that he could be executed for his role in the kidnapping and killing of a 77-year-old woman in 1999. Oklahoma Attorney General Gentner Drummond requested the transfer Thursday of inmate George John Hanson, citing President Donald Trump’s sweeping executive order …

Idaho considers archaic execution practice as 'primary method' of killing prisoners after lethal injection fails
2 months, 1 week ago

Idaho considers archaic execution practice as 'primary method' of killing prisoners after lethal injection fails

Daily Mail  

Republican lawmakers in Idaho are considering going back to the firing squad after the execution of a convicted serial killer via lethal injection completely failed last year. State Representative Bruce Skaug introduced a bill Tuesday that would make Idaho the only US state that makes a firing squad its primary mode of carrying out the death penalty, the Idaho Statesman …

Oklahoma man dies by lethal injection in the nation's final execution of 2024
3 months, 1 week ago

Oklahoma man dies by lethal injection in the nation's final execution of 2024

India Today  

OKLAHOMA CITY: An Oklahoma man who killed a 10-year-old girl in a cannibalistic fantasy died by lethal injection Thursday in the nation’s 25th and final execution of the year. Strapped to a gurney inside the death chamber, Underwood apologized to Jamie’s family and to his own family “for all the terrible things I did.” “The decision to execute me on …

Oklahoma to carry out 25th and final execution in U.S. this year
3 months, 1 week ago

Oklahoma to carry out 25th and final execution in U.S. this year

Raw Story  

An Oklahoma man who killed a 10-year-old girl is to be put to death on Thursday in the 25th and final execution in the United States this year. Kevin Ray Underwood, who turns 45 on Thursday, is scheduled to die by lethal injection at 10:00 am Central Time at the Oklahoma State Penitentiary in McAlester. Underwood, a grocery store clerk, …

Oklahoma man dies by lethal injection in the nation’s final execution of 2024
3 months, 1 week ago

Oklahoma man dies by lethal injection in the nation’s final execution of 2024

Associated Press  

OKLAHOMA CITY — An Oklahoma man who killed a 10-year-old girl in a cannibalistic fantasy died by lethal injection Thursday in the nation’s 25th and final execution of the year. Strapped to a gurney inside the death chamber on Thursday, Underwood apologized to Jamie’s family and to his own family “for all the terrible things I did.” “The decision to …

Oklahoma panel rejects man’s plea for mercy, paves the way for final US execution of 2024
3 months, 2 weeks ago

Oklahoma panel rejects man’s plea for mercy, paves the way for final US execution of 2024

Associated Press  

OKLAHOMA CITY — An Oklahoma panel on Friday rejected a plea for clemency for a man convicted of torturing and killing a 10-year-old girl as part of a cannibalistic fantasy, paving the way for him to become the 25th and final person executed in the U.S. this year. Three members of Oklahoma’s Pardon and Parole Board voted unanimously against clemency …

5 U.S. death row inmates were executed in one week, the most in decades
6 months ago

5 U.S. death row inmates were executed in one week, the most in decades

LA Times  

Death row inmates in five states have been put to death in the span of one week, an unusually high number of executions that defies a yearslong trend of decline in both the use and support of the death penalty in the U.S. Two more death row inmates, in Missouri and Texas, were pronounced dead Tuesday evening following executions, and …

A parole board recommended clemency for Emmanuel Littlejohn. Oklahoma executed him anyway
6 months ago

A parole board recommended clemency for Emmanuel Littlejohn. Oklahoma executed him anyway

The Independent  

The latest headlines from our reporters across the US sent straight to your inbox each weekday Your briefing on the latest headlines from across the US Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors …

Oklahoma executes a man for a 1992 killing despite board recommending his life be spared
6 months ago

Oklahoma executes a man for a 1992 killing despite board recommending his life be spared

Associated Press  

McALESTER, Okla. — Oklahoma executed a man Thursday for his role in the 1992 fatal shooting of a convenience store owner after the governor again rejected a recommendation from the state’s parole board to spare a death row inmate’s life. Emmanuel Littlejohn, 52, received a lethal injection at the Oklahoma State Penitentiary and was declared dead at 10:17 a.m. “A …

Georgia death row inmate to be executed after last-ditch appeal
1 year ago

Georgia death row inmate to be executed after last-ditch appeal

The Independent  

The latest headlines from our reporters across the US sent straight to your inbox each weekday Your briefing on the latest headlines from across the US Your briefing on the latest headlines from across the US SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Willie James Pye, 59, has been on death …

Alabama court says state can make second attempt to execute inmate whose lethal injection failed
1 year, 2 months ago

Alabama court says state can make second attempt to execute inmate whose lethal injection failed

Associated Press  

MONTGOMERY, Ala. — The Alabama Supreme Court on Friday rejected the appeal of a death row inmate who is scheduled to be the first person put to death with nitrogen gas and had argued that he shouldn’t face execution after a previous attempt at a lethal injection failed. Justices without dissent rejected arguments that a second attempt to execute Kenneth …

Oklahoma prepares to execute man for 1995 slaying of Tulsa woman
1 year, 8 months ago

Oklahoma prepares to execute man for 1995 slaying of Tulsa woman

The Independent  

For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. “I am deeply disheartened that the act of defending …

Supreme Court sides with Alabama inmate who seeks to die by nitrogen gas
1 year, 10 months ago

Supreme Court sides with Alabama inmate who seeks to die by nitrogen gas

CNN  

CNN — The Supreme Court on Monday sided with a death row inmate in Alabama – whose scheduled execution by lethal injection was called off at the last minute by the state – who seeks to die by nitrogen gas when he is ultimately executed. Alabama had asked the high court to intervene – arguing that a lower court that …

Supreme Court temporarily halts impending Richard Glossip execution amid potential appeal
1 year, 10 months ago

Supreme Court temporarily halts impending Richard Glossip execution amid potential appeal

The Independent  

Sign up for the daily Inside Washington email for exclusive US coverage and analysis sent to your inbox Get our free Inside Washington email Get our free Inside Washington email SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy The US Supreme Court on Friday agreed to temporarily stay …

Editorial: Bureaucracy of death may snag condemned Oklahoma man, guilty or not
1 year, 11 months ago

Editorial: Bureaucracy of death may snag condemned Oklahoma man, guilty or not

LA Times  

The Oklahoma Pardon and Parole Board voted 2 to 2 to grant clemency to Richard Glossip on April 26. Several prominent Oklahoma Republican lawmakers have likewise argued for Glossip, horrified that their state is close to putting to death a man who may be innocent. Opinion Editorial: Death penalty’s retreat is excruciatingly slow Florida jurors and Oregon’s governor were unlikely …

Oklahoma court upholds Richard Glossip’s murder conviction
1 year, 11 months ago

Oklahoma court upholds Richard Glossip’s murder conviction

Associated Press  

OKLAHOMA CITY — An Oklahoma appeals court on Thursday upheld the murder conviction of death row inmate Richard Glossip, paving the way for Glossip to be executed on May 18, despite the state attorney general’s concerns about some testimony and evidence. The Oklahoma Court of Criminal Appeals’ ruling said his case “has been thoroughly investigated and reviewed,” with Glossip given …

Oklahoma appeals court agrees to slow pace of executions
2 years, 2 months ago

Oklahoma appeals court agrees to slow pace of executions

Associated Press  

OKLAHOMA CITY — Oklahoma’s Court of Criminal Appeals on Tuesday agreed to slow the pace of the state’s upcoming executions at the request of the new attorney general, spacing them at least 60 days apart. The court issued an order setting execution dates for the next seven death row inmates scheduled to die by lethal injection, beginning with Richard Glossip …

New Oklahoma AG seeks to slow pace of lethal injections
2 years, 2 months ago

New Oklahoma AG seeks to slow pace of lethal injections

Associated Press  

OKLAHOMA CITY — Oklahoma’s current schedule of executing a death row inmate roughly every 30 days is placing too much of a burden on prison staff and should be slowed down, the state’s new attorney general wrote in a motion filed Wednesday with the Oklahoma Court of Criminal Appeals. Attorney General Gentner Drummond, who witnessed last week’s execution of Scott …

Oklahoma prison officials: Pastor can’t be in death chamber
2 years, 2 months ago

Oklahoma prison officials: Pastor can’t be in death chamber

Associated Press  

OKLAHOMA CITY — A death row inmate in Oklahoma who is scheduled to be executed on Thursday cannot have his spiritual advisor with him inside the execution chamber because of the minister’s history of anti-death penalty activism, including an arrest, the Department of Corrections said Monday. “The spiritual advisor in this case has been arrested multiple times for such outbursts …

Judge rules against Oklahoma in attempt to execute inmate
2 years, 3 months ago

Judge rules against Oklahoma in attempt to execute inmate

The Independent  

For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy A federal judge in Texas …

Oklahoma panel votes to reject clemency for death row inmate
2 years, 3 months ago

Oklahoma panel votes to reject clemency for death row inmate

Associated Press  

OKLAHOMA CITY — A man convicted in the shotgun slayings of an elderly couple in eastern Oklahoma in 2003 and sentenced to die should not be spared from the death sentence, a state board decided Wednesday. The five-member Pardon and Parole Board voted 3-2 to reject clemency for Scott Eizember, 61, who is scheduled to receive a lethal injection on …

Alabama fails to complete lethal injection for 3rd time
2 years, 4 months ago

Alabama fails to complete lethal injection for 3rd time

The Independent  

For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Alabama's string of troubled lethal …

Oklahoma court denies new hearing for death row inmate
2 years, 4 months ago

Oklahoma court denies new hearing for death row inmate

The Independent  

For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy An Oklahoma appeals court on …

Oklahoma sues federal prisons for inmate it wants to execute
2 years, 5 months ago

Oklahoma sues federal prisons for inmate it wants to execute

Associated Press  

OKLAHOMA CITY — Oklahoma is suing the Federal Bureau of Prisons for custody of a state death row inmate whom the bureau is refusing to hand over, with the state saying the man’s scheduled execution cannot be carried out in December if he’s not returned soon. A federal lawsuit was filed Tuesday by state Attorney General John O’Connor urging that …

Judge dismisses lawsuit over upcoming lethal injection
2 years, 5 months ago

Judge dismisses lawsuit over upcoming lethal injection

Associated Press  

MONTGOMERY, Ala — A federal judge dismissed an inmate’s claim seeking to block his upcoming execution in Alabama because of reported problems at a recent lethal injection. But U.S. District Judge R. Austin Huffaker Jr. also warned Alabama’s prison commissioner to strictly follow established protocol when officials attempt to put Smith to death next month. Smith’s attorneys pointed to a …

Oklahoma panel rejects clemency for man in baby’s killing
2 years, 6 months ago

Oklahoma panel rejects clemency for man in baby’s killing

Associated Press  

OKLAHOMA CITY — Oklahoma’s Pardon and Parole Board voted 4-1 Tuesday to deny clemency for a man sentenced to die for killing his 9-month-old daughter in 2002, moving him a step closer to his scheduled lethal injection next month. Attorneys for the state and members of the victim’s family told the board that Cole’s symptoms of mental illness are exaggerated …

Oklahoma Executes Man Using Method That Led To Multiple Botched Killings
2 years, 7 months ago

Oklahoma Executes Man Using Method That Led To Multiple Botched Killings

Huff Post  

Oklahoma executed James Coddington on Thursday, despite the state's Pardon and Parole Board recommending his death sentence be reduced to life without the possibility of parole. courtesy of James Coddington's legal team Oklahoma executed 50-year-old James Coddington on Thursday morning, marking the state’s first killing since a federal judge allowed it to continue using a lethal injection method that has …

Oklahoma, with a history of botched lethal injections, prepares to start executing a man a month
2 years, 7 months ago

Oklahoma, with a history of botched lethal injections, prepares to start executing a man a month

CNN  

CNN — Oklahoma will soon begin executing death row inmates at a pace of about one man per month, with plans to put to death 25 prisoners over the next two years despite cries by critics and experts who point not only to outstanding questions of the mental fitness or possible innocence of some but also the state’s recent history …

Delay raises questions about Alabama lethal injection
2 years, 8 months ago

Delay raises questions about Alabama lethal injection

The Independent  

For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Alabama’s prison commissioner did not …

Alabama gov: Execution set despite wishes of victim’s family
2 years, 8 months ago

Alabama gov: Execution set despite wishes of victim’s family

Associated Press  

MONTGOMERY, Ala. — Alabama’s governor said Wednesday that she has decided the state will proceed later this week with a plan to execute a man convicted of killing his former girlfriend decades ago, overriding a plea from the victim’s family to spare the man’s life. But Alabama Attorney General Steve Marshall urged Ivey to let execution plans proceed and ensure …

Alabama Supreme Court sets execution date for inmate
2 years, 9 months ago

Alabama Supreme Court sets execution date for inmate

Associated Press  

MONTGOMERY, Ala. — The Alabama Supreme Court has set an execution date of July 28 for a man convicted of killing his one-time girlfriend after breaking into her home in Jefferson County almost three decades ago, according to a court order made public Monday. Courts have since rejected appeals by James including claims that his lawyers were ineffective, and the …

Oklahoma official seeks execution dates for 25 inmates
2 years, 9 months ago

Oklahoma official seeks execution dates for 25 inmates

Associated Press  

OKLAHOMA CITY — Oklahoma’s attorney general has asked the state’s highest appeals court to set execution dates for 25 death row inmates following a federal judge’s rejection of their challenge to the state’s lethal injection method. In 25 similar filings with the Oklahoma Court of Criminal Appeals on Friday, Attorney General John O’Connor wrote that the federal court’s stays of …

Judge rules Oklahoma’s lethal injection method is constitutional following a legal challenge from dozens of death row prisoners
2 years, 9 months ago

Judge rules Oklahoma’s lethal injection method is constitutional following a legal challenge from dozens of death row prisoners

CNN  

CNN — Four days after a federal court ruled against death row inmates arguing Oklahoma’s lethal injection protocol is cruel and unusual, the state’s attorney general asked for more than two dozen executions to be scheduled. The lawsuit, brought on behalf of 28 death row prisoners, named officials with multiple Oklahoma corrections agencies and claimed the injection method causes “constitutionally …

Judge rules Oklahoma’s lethal injection method is constitutional following a legal challenge from dozens of death row prisoners
2 years, 9 months ago

Judge rules Oklahoma’s lethal injection method is constitutional following a legal challenge from dozens of death row prisoners

CNN  

CNN — Oklahoma’s use of a three-drug lethal injection method is constitutional, a federal judge ruled Monday following a lawsuit from nearly 30 people on death row challenging the protocol. The suit, brought on behalf of 28 death row prisoners, named officials with multiple Oklahoma corrections agencies and claimed the state’s lethal injection method violates the Eighth Amendment because it …

Federal judge OKs Oklahoma’s lethal injection method
2 years, 9 months ago

Federal judge OKs Oklahoma’s lethal injection method

Associated Press  

OKLAHOMA CITY — A federal judge in Oklahoma on Monday ruled the state’s three-drug lethal injection method is constitutional, paving the way for the state to request execution dates for more than two dozen death row inmates who were plaintiffs in the case. Judge Stephen Friot’s ruling followed a six-day federal trial earlier this year in which attorneys for 28 …

A federal judge rules Oklahoma's lethal injection method is constitutional
2 years, 9 months ago

A federal judge rules Oklahoma's lethal injection method is constitutional

NPR  

A federal judge rules Oklahoma's lethal injection method is constitutional Enlarge this image toggle caption Sue Ogrocki/AP Sue Ogrocki/AP A federal judge in Oklahoma on Monday ruled the state's three-drug lethal injection method is constitutional, paving the way for the state to request execution dates for more than two dozen death row inmates who were plaintiffs in the case. Judge …

Attorneys want moratorium, probe after execution halted
2 years, 11 months ago

Attorneys want moratorium, probe after execution halted

Associated Press  

NASHVILLE, Tenn. — After an undisclosed “oversight” forced Tennessee to call off the execution of Oscar Smith an hour before he was to die last week, Smith’s attorneys on Thursday asked for a moratorium on executions and a review of the state’s execution protocols. Bill Lee issued a brief statement on April 21 at 5:42 p.m. saying that “due to …

Oklahoma attorneys say execution method is constitutional
3 years ago

Oklahoma attorneys say execution method is constitutional

Associated Press  

OKLAHOMA CITY — The three-drug lethal injection method Oklahoma uses is constitutional and is unlikely to lead to inmates experiencing much pain before they die, Oklahoma’s solicitor general told a federal judge on Monday. Mithun Mansinghani told U.S. District Judge Stephen Friot that the four lethal injections the state has carried out since October “are definitive proof that the protocol …

Federal judge opens hearing on Oklahoma’s lethal injection
3 years ago

Federal judge opens hearing on Oklahoma’s lethal injection

Associated Press  

OKLAHOMA CITY — Oklahoma’s push to resume executions, which includes four death row prisoners put to death since October, faced the scrutiny of a federal judge in Oklahoma City on Monday in a case brought by more than two dozen death row inmates who are challenging Oklahoma’s lethal injection protocols. On Monday, the plaintiffs called Dr. Craig Stephens, an Oklahoma …

Oklahoma executes man for role in 2005 quadruple slaying
3 years, 1 month ago

Oklahoma executes man for role in 2005 quadruple slaying

Associated Press  

McALESTER, Okla. — Oklahoma executed a man Thursday for his role in a quadruple slaying in 2005. Gilbert Ray Postelle, 35, received a lethal injection at the Oklahoma State Penitentiary in McAlester, and prison officials declared him dead at 10:14 a.m. “Today did not put closure on anything,” said Shelli Milner, the sister of Donnie Swindle, one of the four …

Oklahoma Executes Man Days Before A Trial On Whether Its Lethal Injection Method Is Legal
3 years, 1 month ago

Oklahoma Executes Man Days Before A Trial On Whether Its Lethal Injection Method Is Legal

Huff Post  

The state of Oklahoma executed Gilbert Postelle, 35, on Thursday. Gilbert Postelle's clemency application The state of Oklahoma on Thursday executed Gilbert Postelle, 35, a man with an IQ that approaches an intellectual disability who suffered from neglect and drug addiction as a child. Postelle is the fourth person killed by the state in recent months amid a lawsuit over …

Oklahoma executes man for 2001 slayings of 2 hotel workers
3 years, 2 months ago

Oklahoma executes man for 2001 slayings of 2 hotel workers

Associated Press  

McALESTER, Okla. — Oklahoma executed a man Thursday for the brutal slayings of two hotel workers during a robbery in 2001. “Although Donald Grant’s execution does not bring Brenda back, it allows us all to finally move forward knowing justice was served,” Pilcher said after witnessing his execution. Grant had asked a federal judge to temporarily halt his execution, arguing …

Appeals court paves the way for 2 more Oklahoma executions
3 years, 2 months ago

Appeals court paves the way for 2 more Oklahoma executions

Associated Press  

OKLAHOMA CITY — A federal appeals court rejected a request from two Oklahoma death row inmates to temporarily halt their upcoming lethal injections. The two have argued that the state’s current three-drug lethal injection protocol that uses midazolam as the first drug will expose them to a constitutionally unacceptable risk of severe pain. The judge also determined that Grant and …

Oklahoma death row inmates seek firing squad as alternative
3 years, 2 months ago

Oklahoma death row inmates seek firing squad as alternative

Associated Press  

OKLAHOMA CITY — Two Oklahoma death row inmates facing executions in the coming months offered firing squad as a less problematic alternative to the state’s three-drug lethal injection, one of their attorneys told a federal judge on Monday. The two inmates — Donald Grant and Gilbert Postelle — want U.S. District Judge Stephen Friot to grant them a temporary injunction …

Federal judge grants stay of execution to Oklahoma inmate
3 years, 3 months ago

Federal judge grants stay of execution to Oklahoma inmate

Associated Press  

OKLAHOMA CITY — A federal judge in Oklahoma has granted a stay of execution for a death row inmate who was scheduled to receive a lethal injection in March. The order reinstates Coddington as a plaintiff in a case with other death row inmates who are challenging Oklahoma’s three-drug lethal injection protocol. Firing squad is one of several authorized execution …

Oklahoma executes man for 1985 slaying of schoolteacher
3 years, 3 months ago

Oklahoma executes man for 1985 slaying of schoolteacher

Associated Press  

McALESTER, Okla. — Oklahoma executed a man Thursday for the 1985 shooting death of an Oklahoma City-area schoolteacher after courts rejected his claim that the state’s lethal injection method would result in unconstitutional pain and suffering. He was declared dead at 10:16 a.m. Oklahoma Attorney General John O’Connor said in statement that the execution “was carried out with zero complications.” …

Oklahoma judge stays Jan. 6 execution for competency hearing
3 years, 3 months ago

Oklahoma judge stays Jan. 6 execution for competency hearing

Associated Press  

OKLAHOMA CITY — A state court judge in Oklahoma granted a temporary stay of execution on Monday for a death row inmate convicted of killing a security guard during a 2004 bank robbery in Tulsa. Lay was scheduled to be executed on Jan. 6, but after a hearing before Mills last week, the judge determined there was “good reason” to …

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