AG and defense file joint motion to stay Glossip execution

Mar. 29—Oklahoma's attorney general and attorneys for death row inmate Richard Glossip filed a joint motion to reschedule his May execution date for next year.

The motion comes after Glossip's defense attorneys gained access Jan. 27 to a box of evidence that prosecutors previously withheld from the defense, claiming the contents of the box were "work product."

After viewing the contents of the box, the defense filed a new application for post-conviction relief and a request for an evidentiary hearing into the box's contents with the Oklahoma Court of Criminal Appeals.

"Had these items from Box 8 been disclosed before trial as the state was constitutionally obligated to do, there is a reasonable probability that the result of the trial would have been different," the defense wrote in its motion.

Glossip, 60, is scheduled to be put to death on May 18, 2023, for his conviction in the 1997 murder of Barry Van Treese. Glossip was convicted twice of first-degree murder in the murder-for-hire plot that accused him of hiring Justin Sneed to kill Van Treese.

According to the defense's application, the box contains evidence of the mental health of witnesses, withheld statements and video, witnesses viewing evidence, and proof that statements were manipulated to change key testimony in the case.

"This new evidence provides additional support for the claim that the state realized mid-trial that its key witnesses' prior statements did not match the physical evidence," the defense's motion states. "Rather than pause the proceedings to address the problem with the court and the defense — in a just attempt discover what the truth actually was — it attempted to conform the testimony to the existing record."

OCCA previously denied two requests for new hearings filed last year by attorneys for Glossip following the results of a 343-page investigative report requested by an Oklahoma ad hoc committee.

The report, produced by the Reed Smith law firm, submitted as part of the evidence contains a deep dive into the court case and transcripts, while containing interviews of new witnesses, and new paperwork.

The ad hoc committee is comprised of 62 Oklahoma lawmakers and is led by State Rep. Kevin McDugle, R-Broken Arrow, who said he would fight to end the death penalty in Oklahoma if Glossip is executed.

Attorneys for the AG's Office also requested the stay to allow time for a review of Glossip's case that was ordered in January by Oklahoma Attorney General Gentner Drummond.

Drummond said in the January announcement his office retained Rex Duncan to review "all aspects of the investigation, trial, sentencing, and appeals process."

"An independent investigation ordered by the Attorney General is still ongoing and the state agrees it is appropriate to permit that investigation to conclude before Mr. Glossip's execution so that the state can make a fully informed decision about its position," the motion states.

The U.S. Supreme Court is also reviewing Glossip's case after a petition for a writ of certiorari was filed in January asking the country's highest court for relief citing new evidence claiming Brady v. Maryland violations.

The case is scheduled to be reviewed by the court on March 31, 2023 with a decision to hear the case made at a later date.