On Thursday, Oklahoma carried out its second execution of 2024, executing a man found guilty of kidnapping, raping and killing a child after nearly 40 years in prison.
Richard Norman Rojem Jr. was put to death for the killing of his seven-year-old stepdaughter Layla Cummings.
Following a break of over six years, the state reinstated the death penalty in October 2021, and this was the thirteenth execution since then.
Rojem, 66. was declared dead in the Oklahoma State Penitentiary at 10:16 a.m. after a fatal injection.
According to the Oklahoma Department of Corrections, Rojem had spent the longest time of any prisoner currently on death row, due in significant part to his two successful appeals of his sentence.
In addition, Rojem was the most recent death row convict in Oklahoma to maintain his innocence up until the very end, even in the face of strong circumstantial evidence to the contrary.
Layla Dawn Cummings was taken while her mother was working at a McDonald's restaurant from an Elk City condominium late on July 6 or early July 7, 1984.
In testimony at his 1985 trial, Layla's brother, who was nine years old at the time, claimed that "Rick" was at the apartment when she was taken.
On July 7, early in the morning, a farmer discovered her dead body in a plowed field next to Burns Flat. She had suffered multiple stab wounds and had been raped.
At the time, Rojem resided in Burns Flat.
According to court documents, he wed Mindy Cummings, the victim's mother, while serving a sentence of imprisonment in Michigan for sexual assaults against two adolescent females.
She was his cellmate's sister.
In 1982, he was granted parole and traveled to Oklahoma.
At the time of the murder, he and Mindy Cummings had been separated for around two months.
The Oklahoma Pardon and Parole Board decided 5-0 on June 17 to deny Rojem clemency.
Oklahoma Attorney General Gentner Drummond issued the following statement today:
“Justice for Layla Cummings was finally served this morning with the execution of the monster responsible for her rape and murder. Layla’s family has endured unimaginable suffering for almost 40 years. My prayer is that today’s action brings a sense of comfort to those who loved her.”.
Comments