'I'm not a monster': Wendell Grissom to be executed in Oklahoma for home invasion murder

A antheral with a analyzable beingness since the time helium was born, Wendell Arden Grissom is “much much than the worst happening helium did," Grissom's attorneys say.

Grissom's attorneys picture him arsenic severely mentally stunted by a analyzable birth, which, combined with a drawstring of caput injuries, caused him to crook to drugs, alcohol, crime, and eventually, murder.

Now Oklahoma is acceptable to execute Grissom by lethal injection for the 2005 execution of 23-year-old Amber Matthews. If the execution moves forward, Grissom volition beryllium the archetypal inmate executed by Oklahoma this twelvemonth and the ninth successful the United States.

"I don’t cognize what made maine bash what I did," Grissom said successful his confession to police. "I don’t know. I ne'er done thing similar this successful my beingness ... I person nary explanation."

Although helium has admitted to the crimes, Grissom has continued to support that the execution was a once-in-a-lifetime mistake.

"I'm not a monster," Grissom wrote to the Oklahoma Pardon and Parole Board successful 2019. "Please, someway look past that 1 time successful my life, for it's not who I americium astatine all."

Grissom’s lawyers person argued successful tribunal filings that the decease punishment should not beryllium applied to him due to the fact that of his developmental issues. But prosecutors accidental they shouldn't excuse his actions.

“Grissom chose to beryllium reduced by those challenges," prosecutors said successful tribunal records. "He embraced bitterness, rejected galore opportunities for healing and change, and near down a way of terror, decease and destruction."

As the execution approaches, USA TODAY is looking backmost astatine the crime, who Grissom is, and who his victims were.

What has Wendell Arden Grissom convicted of?

On Nov. 3, 2005, Grissom and a stateless hitchhiker helium had picked up named Jessie Johns were readying to burglarize homes erstwhile they targeted 23-year-old Dreu Kopf's location adjacent Watonga, 70 miles northwest of Oklahoma City.

Kopf was location with her 2 daughters and a friend, Amber Matthews, erstwhile Grissom came knocking. Initially, helium asked Kopf if her hubby was location but yet changeable his mode in, laughing arsenic helium fired, according to tribunal records.

Kopf, who had been changeable successful the wrist, jumped connected Grissom portion Matthews ran with Kopf's 5-week-old into a country wherever Kopf’s 19-month-old girl was sleeping.

“Dreu begged Grissom to stop,” tribunal records say. She offered him “anything helium wanted” to spare their lives but Kopf said successful tribunal records that “he was conscionable laughing and helium conscionable kept shooting and shooting and laughing.”

Grissom changeable Kopf successful the caput and hip. Hearing the shooting from wrong the chamber with the girls, Matthews was "overcome with terror" and "vomited each implicit her jeans and connected the floor,” tribunal records say.

Kopf managed to bargain Grissom’s motortruck and escape, hoping helium would travel her. On the mode out, she heard Matthews scream, "Please don't sprout me," earlier Grissom changeable her successful the backmost of the caput and past the forehead arsenic she held 1 of the girls. Matthews died.

Kopf managed to emblem down assistance and survived aft being treated astatine a hospital. Police said Grissom and Johns fled Kopf's location utilizing her husband's four-wheeler. Court records accidental Grissom and Johns were arrested successful a adjacent café aft section citizens reported seeing the men to police.

Matthews' father, Garry Matthews, described her girl arsenic the “apple of my eye, a cute blond blue-eyed small bundle of joy.”

“She was not lone my daughter, she was my champion friend. In and retired of marriages, she was ever determination for me,” she said during Grissom's 2008 trial. “The past edifice we ate in, I can’t spell back. Everything that reminds maine of her brings backmost the pain.”

Grissom's analyzable birth, childhood

When Grissom was calved successful 1968 successful Arkansas, helium “remained successful the commencement canal for an inordinately agelong play of time, causing him to endure oxygen deprivation,” his mother, Mary Grissom, said successful tribunal records.

Grissom’s improvement was stunted and his parents had difficulties knowing him until helium was astir 7 years old, with Mary Grissom saying "it sounded similar helium was speaking Chinese." In school, Grissom had affectional and behavioral problems.

His stunted improvement was lone made worse by a drawstring of car accidents. Court records accidental Grissom was riding a motorcycle by himself without a helmet arsenic an 8-year-old and deed a factual surface, knocking him unconscious and requiring 18 stitches to the backmost of his head.

Other motorcycle accidents happened erstwhile helium was 15 and 16, further injuring his head.

“Wendell was ne'er the aforesaid aft those close-in-time terrible motorcycle accidents. He had atrocious headaches,” his attorneys accidental successful tribunal records. “This spelled the extremity of Wendell’s schoolhouse days, arsenic helium was incapable to instrumentality to schoolhouse owed to his carnal and cognitive difficulties.”

Court records said Grissom and his household moved from Arkansas to Texas erstwhile helium was 16 years old.

Grissom’s adulthood was nary different

Court records accidental Grissom had committed respective location invasions successful Texas successful the years earlier 2005.

After 1 location penetration successful 1992, Grissom stole and sold televisions, silver, watches, and jewelry, among different items. He was convicted of the robbery the adjacent twelvemonth and sentenced to 25 years successful prison. He lone served 9 years aft getting parole successful 2001.

Afterward, Grissom moved backmost to Arkansas, wherever helium joined a chap motortruck operator 2 weeks aft gathering her. Both were dense drinkers and addicted to Adderall and meth. Court records accidental Grissom was prescribed medicine for “depression, predominant headaches, anxiety, crying spells.”

Grissom continued to spiral arsenic his matrimony began to fail. In December 2004, little than a twelvemonth earlier the murder, Grissom was arrested for threatening his then-wife with a rifle. He past voluntarily entered a “residential programme for chemic dependency.”

In the months and days starring up to the execution successful Oklahoma, Grissom was described arsenic a wreck.

“Wendell’s nonrecreational beingness and idiosyncratic beingness were successful shambles, and helium was depressed and suicidal,” tribunal records say. “Friends and household noticed irrational behaviors.”

Grissom is fundamentally retired of options

The Oklahoma Pardon and Parole Board met successful aboriginal February to ballot connected whether to assistance Grissom clemency. As portion of the filings, Grissom’s household submitted letters asking to spare his life.

“Wendell is simply a bully idiosyncratic who made a unspeakable mistake and Wendell has made galore attempts to amusement remorse for his actions,” his parent said. “Wendell has been successful situation for astir 20 years now, which has been much than capable clip to wage for what helium has done.”

Grissom chose not to marque a connection to the committee via video from prison, according to the Oklahoman, portion of the USA TODAY Network. Assistant Attorney General Jennifer Crabb told the committee that Grissom has been saying helium doesn't privation clemency since astatine slightest July.

In substance messages to his spiritual advisor successful January, helium called his clemency proceeding a joke. Grissom besides wrote that helium is not frightened of dying due to the fact that helium knows wherever helium is going.

"I'll yet beryllium escaped from this spot and all, you know?" helium wrote. "I for definite bash not privation to walk the remainder of my beingness successful this atrocious place."

Attorney General Gentner Drummond told the committee "this is simply a textbook lawsuit for the decease penalty." He called the random and brutal onslaught connected "innocent strangers" the benignant of transgression that keeps radical awake astatine night.

The committee voted 4-1 to contradict Grissom’s clemency, which means Republican Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt cannot present commute Grissom's condemnation to beingness successful situation without the anticipation of parole. Grissom’s lone way to a stayed execution is successful the national courts oregon the Supreme Court.

Contributing: Nolan Clay - The Oklahoman

Fernando Cervantes Jr. is simply a trending quality newsman for USA TODAY. Reach him astatine fernando.cervantes@gannett.com and travel him connected X @fern_cerv_.

This nonfiction primitively appeared connected USA TODAY: Oklahoma to execute Wendell Grissom successful location penetration murder. Who is he?