Anthony Sanchez: The Innocence Report *The following report is based on an extended conversation between Anthony Sanchez’s Investigator David Ballard and his Spiritual Advisor Jeff Hood. On the morning of December 20, 1996, Juli Busken was up early to help a friend who was leaving town. When she returned to her apartment complex around 5:30am, she met pure evil. Her abductor forced her into her car. There were multiple witnesses who saw them driving toward Lake... Read more
Words from Oklahoma’s Death Row: Emmanuel Littlejohn on the Richard Glossip Moment Late last night, I got this message from Emmanuel Littlejohn. He is one of the guys in Oklahoma that I work most closely with. The background of this message is that Littlejohn was part of a robbery where a convenience store clerk was killed (in fact, his accomplice fired the shot without his knowledge). Although he didn’t kill anyone, he was convicted under a type... Read more
The Failure of the Campaign to Save Richard Glossip & The Hope of Resurrection Light remained longer than I thought it would. It was as if the sun refused to move. Looking up, I felt like the very cosmos was trying to expose what was going on. It was the evening of September 21, 2011. With hundreds of others, I stood outside of the Georgia Diagnostic and Classification Prison in Jackson, Georgia. In front of me, row after... Read more
A Higher Bar: On the Hidden Fallacy of the Richard Glossip Clemency Hearing This morning, I’ve been watching the clemency hearing of Richard Glossip. Repeatedly, I’ve heard the word, “innocent.” Let there be no doubt, I believe Glossip is innocent. Ultimately though, this hearing is truly problematic charade for everyone on death row other than Glossip. In fact, I believe it is setting a new impossible standard for saving their lives. Hear the words of multiple state officials:... Read more
OpEd originally published on April 24, 2023 in the The Arkansas Democrat-Gazette: Words, Voyeurism and Presence: On Our Tornado Recovery Our home is gone. That which the wind didn’t take the rain did. Nobody prepares for it…realizing that your life as you knew it is forever changed. What do you say to your kids? The only thing that I knew to say was to repeatedly say, “I love you.” Other than that, I’m just present. I’m just... Read more
Occasionally, God grants us serendipitous encounters the synchronicity of which cannot be denied. Such was the case when Lindsey Barnett stopped to speak to me after an incredibly traumatic experience for us both, the execution of Scott Eizember. You see, I was on one side of the glass and she was on the other. My job was to comfort Eizember in his final moments. Her job was to witness the execution of the man who killed her grandparents, A.J.... Read more
On a particularly powerful day, I was sitting in a dead church, and I started to become deeply troubled in my spirit. I couldn’t figure out why. After some moments of prayer, I heard the voice of God, “I am not there; come outside. I have risen.” Light from the heavens touched my soul. Slowly, I was pulled outside. The deadness of the church faded away. The streets came into focus. God was on every corner. Light exploded from... Read more
The Storm…or The Day My Little Rock Blew Away Who would ever think that their entire world would be completely interrupted by a tornado? Jeff, Phillip, Quinley, Madeleine & Lucas. There is no doubt that our kids saved us. For years I’d said it, now it was truer than ever. After numerous warnings about inclement weather, I picked them up early. We were making our way home when it hit. Trees crashing all around... Read more
3/26/23 Over the years, I have received hundreds of death threats (from all over the world actually). Truthfully, it’s part of the job. Rarely, have I put the perpetrator on blast. Unfortunately for Angellos Ioannis Malefakis, today is not one of those days. Those who work to stop executions should not be threatened with execution themselves. These two comments were in response to me filing a lawsuit against the Oklahoma Department of Corrections alleging defamation. Of course, it’s... Read more
*Letter to Editor that appeared in various Alabama media outlets today. Chickenhawk is a political term used to describe someone who is for war but lacks the fortitude to participate in it, usually asking others to participate instead. While such language has most often been used in war, I think it’s also appropriate to describe Alabama Governor Kay Ivey’s position on executions. Think about it, Governor Ivey consistently calls for greater use of the death penalty with no... Read more
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