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Oklahoma City, OK – Wendell Grissom, 56, was executed by lethal injection Thursday afternoon for the 2005 murder of Amber Matthews. His final words, “I’m not a monster,” echoed the defense’s argument that he was more than the worst act he committed.
Grissom and Jessie Floyd Johns were convicted in the killing of Matthews, 23, and the wounding of Dreu Kopf at Kopf’s Blaine County residence. Johns received life without parole, while Grissom was sentenced to death. Grissom’s attorneys cited birth complications, mental health issues, and multiple head injuries as contributing factors to his substance abuse and criminal history.
Grissom confessed to the crime, stating, “I don’t know what made me do what I did. I don’t know.
I never done anything like this in my life… I have no explanation.”
He maintained the shooting was a mistake. In a 2019 letter to the Oklahoma Pardon and Parole Board, he pleaded, “I’m not a monster…
Please, somehow look past that one day in my life, for it’s not who I am at all.”
Prosecutors presented a different narrative. They argued Grissom, who had a lengthy criminal record, and Johns, whom he’d picked up hitchhiking, were driving on Interstate 40 when they decided to commit robberies.
They targeted Kopf’s home, where Matthews was visiting with Kopf and her two young children. Matthews was shot twice and died later at a hospital.
Kopf, also shot twice, escaped in Grissom’s truck to get help. Kopf’s children were found unharmed inside the home.
Grissom and Johns fled but were quickly apprehended.
While Grissom’s attorneys didn’t dispute his guilt, they argued for clemency, citing brain damage they said was never presented to the jury. They emphasized Grissom’s remorse and apology to Matthews’ family. Despite their efforts, the Pardon and Parole Board denied Grissom’s request.