Supporters of Richard Glossip rally on eve of Oklahoma execution
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Version 0 of 1. The death-row inmate Richard Glossip maintained his innocence on the eve of his execution in Oklahoma on Tuesday, while his attorneys went to court with what they said was new evidence supporting claims that he was framed. Glossip, 52, is scheduled to be executed on Wednesday afternoon at the Oklahoma State Penitentiary in McAlester. He was convicted of ordering the 1997 beating death of Barry Van Treese, who owned the motel where Glossip worked. Related: Is Oklahoma about to execute an innocent man? Richard Glossip's supporters say yes But Glossip’s lawyers asked the Oklahoma court of criminal appeals to halt the execution, saying they uncovered new details in the case, including a signed affidavit from an inmate who served time in prison with Justin Sneed, who was convicted of fatally beating Van Treese. Sneed was the prosecution’s key witness and testified that Glossip masterminded the killing because he was afraid Van Treese was about to fire him for embezzling money and poorly managing the motel. Sneed was sentenced to life in prison in exchange for his testimony. A fellow inmate, Michael Scott, said in an affidavit that he heard Sneed say “he set Richard Glossip up, and that Richard Glossip didn’t do anything”. “We’re asking for a stay of execution to give the court more time to review this new evidence, which we think casts grave doubt on Richard’s guilt,” said Mark Henricksen, one of Glossip’s attorneys. Glossip maintained his innocence on Tuesday in a brief telephone interview with the Associated Press and said he remained optimistic his lethal injection would be halted. “They’ll never take that from me,” Glossip said. “I’ll hope for the best. I won’t let it bring me down. “If you’ve got to go out … you don’t want to be bitter and angry about it.” Glossip’s case has drawn attention from death penalty opponents, and his family and supporters rallied Tuesday at the Oklahoma Capitol. They want Republican Governor Mary Fallin to issue a 60-day stay to give Glossip’s attorneys more time to investigate new leads. But the governor said in a statement on Wednesday that she remained convinced of Glossip’s guilt and “after carefully reviewing the facts of this case multiple times” had no plans to issue a stay. Among his supports is Hollywood actress Susan Sarandon, who played a nun in the movie Dead Man Walking. The woman Sarandon portrayed, anti-death penalty advocate Sister Helen Prejean, serves as Glossip’s spiritual adviser and plans to attend his execution on Wednesday. I don't know if #RichardGlossip will be executed tomorrow. I still have hope that this injustice will be stopped and so does Richard. The Oklahoma county district attorney David Prater, whose office prosecuted Glossip before Prater was elected, said he had reviewed boxes of evidence and was convinced of Glossip’s guilt. Glossip’s execution is scheduled for 3pm on Wednesday. Department of Corrections spokeswoman Terri Watkins said the time was moved from 6pm so the process did not disrupt a shift change and meal time at the facility, and so that media and execution witnesses would be off the prison grounds before dark. |