Attorney General Gentner Drummond has formally requested that the Oklahoma Pardon and Parole Board deny clemency for Wendell Arden Grissom, who is scheduled for execution in March. Grissom was convicted of murdering Amber Dawn Matthews.
The incident occurred on November 3, 2005, when Grissom and an accomplice, Jessie Johns, broke into a house in Blaine County. Inside were Dreu Kopf with her two young daughters and her friend Amber Dawn Matthews. During the invasion, Grissom shot Kopf multiple times while laughing. Kopf survived and managed to escape in hopes of diverting Grissom's attention from Matthews and the children.
Grissom pursued Matthews into a bedroom where she held a baby. Despite her pleas for mercy, he shot her once in the back of the head and then again in the forehead, resulting in her death.
Jessie Johns received a life sentence without parole for his role in the crime. Meanwhile, Grissom faces execution on March 20.
"Wendell Grissom took the life of a kind, vivacious 23-year-old who went into nursing to help people and died protecting two innocent children," Drummond stated. "Amber Matthews’ monstrous murder demands that justice be carried out. I urge the Pardon and Parole Board to deny clemency for this cold-blooded killer."
The clemency hearing for Grissom is scheduled for February 5.