Ex-Oklahoma death row inmate pleads guilty to lesser charge

Former Oklahoma death row prisoner Richard Glossip, who spent nearly 30 years incarcerated and was on the brink of execution three times for a 1997 killing, pleaded guilty to a lesser accessory charge, his attorney said Thursday.Glossip had been sentenced to death over the killing in Oklahoma City of his former boss, motel owner Barry Van Treese. Van Treese was beaten with a baseball bat in what prosecutors have alleged was a murder-for-hire scheme.Another man, Justin Sneed, admitted robbing and killing Van Treese, but testified that he did so after Glossip promised to pay him $10,000. Sneed was the state's key witness against Glossip and was sentenced to life in prison.In February 2025, the U.S.

Supreme Court threw out Glossip's conviction, and he was released on bond in May to await retrial. His longstanding claims of innocence have drawn support from Kim Kardashian and other prominent figures.With Glossip's plea to a lesser accessory charge, the murder charge was dismissed, said Don Knight, Glossip's attorney. He said Glossip will be sentenced in December, when he could be released or sent back to prison for another 15 years."We believe Rich has more than paid his debt to society by spending nearly 30 years on death row, during which time he was served three last meals and came within minutes of being executed