Oklahoma Executes Wendell Grissom for 2005 Murder in Home-Invasion Robbery

Grissom's execution marks Oklahoma's first of 2025, amid ongoing debates over capital punishment and mitigating factors like brain damage.

Wendell Grissom, 56, was executed by lethal injection for the 2005 murder of Amber Matthews during a random home-invasion robbery in Blaine County, Oklahoma.
Grissom and co-defendant Jessie Floyd Johns also shot and wounded Dreu Kopf, who managed to escape and seek help; Johns received a life sentence without parole.
Grissom's attorneys argued during a clemency hearing that he suffered from brain damage and had shown remorse, but the Oklahoma Pardon and Parole Board denied his request.
Dreu Kopf continues to experience lasting physical and emotional trauma from the attack, including bullet fragments in her body and persistent fear.
Oklahoma Attorney General Gentner Drummond described the case as a 'textbook' example for the death penalty, citing the random and brutal nature of the crime.