Richard Glossip's Attorneys Scramble For New Evidence

Attorneys for the next inmate on death row are fighting the clock. Richard Glossip is set to be executed in 65 days.

Monday, July 13th 2015, 4:23 pm

By: News 9


Attorneys for the next inmate on death row are fighting the clock. Richard Glossip is set to be executed in 65 days.

His supporters gathered Monday at the state capitol, desperate for new evidence that might help save his life. His attorney shared a few leads they are pursuing in the case and continued to claim Glossip's innocence.

Sister Helen Prejean, an advocate for the abolition of the death penalty, was at the conference. She said Glossip is holding up as he awaits his death.

“He’s found a way, actually, to live in peace where he is,” Prejean said.

Prejean communicates with Glossip often.

“’You are not going to die.’ And that’s the feeling I communicate to Richard. But we are fighting like you know what behind the scenes and I know the uphill battle we have,” she explained.

At Monday’s press conference, Prejean and Glossip's attorneys said they're desperate for new evidence to help them prove he is not a killer.

“Innocence is really I think the only thing we have left. And I’m scared to death, quite frankly. I’m scared to death. I am terrified that we can’t get enough information to get back in front of a court,” one of Glossip’s attorneys Don Knight told News 9.

To get back in front of a court, they said they need witnesses who might have been at that motel in 1997 when Barry Van Treese was beaten to death to come forward.

And they said they need Justin Sneed to come clean. It was his testimony that led to Glossip's conviction. Sneed said Glossip told him to murder Van Treese.

Glossip's attorney said the guilty verdict came from a flawed investigative process and an underfunded defense. Prejean said she can't imagine what she called a broken system leading to the death of an innocent man.

“This case relies solely upon the evidence and the testimony of one man who has admitted to being the murderer and who is now spending the rest of his life in a medium security prison in Oklahoma and the guy who we pointed the finger at is scheduled to be executed,” Knight said.

Glossip’s supporters have also tried to track down Sneed’s daughter.  She wrote a letter stating her father had talked about wanting to recant his testimony.

According to Knight, one of Glossip’s attorneys has had a direct meeting with Sneed. Knight would not elaborate on the content of that meeting. However, he did say he believed Justin Sneed spoke about the murder from a place of fear.

Glossip’s execution is scheduled for Sept. 16.

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