Oklahoma executes man convicted of killing 7-year-old former stepdaughter
McALESTER, Okla. (KFOR) – The state of Oklahoma on Thursday executed a man convicted of kidnapping, raping and killing a 7-year-old girl in 1984.
Richard Rojem, 66, received a three-drug lethal injection at the Oklahoma State Penitentiary in McAlester and was declared dead at 10:16 a.m., prison officials said.
According to the Oklahoma Attorney General's Office, Rojem was convicted and sentenced to death for the July 1984 kidnapping, rape and murder of his 7-year-old former stepdaughter, Layla Dawn Cummings, in Washita County. Her body was later found along the road in Burns Flat.
On Monday, the Oklahoma Pardon and Parole Board denied clemency for Rojem after hearing from both sides whether to spare his life or not.
“She never had a Sweet 16 party, graduated from high school, got to marry her true love, or had children of her own,” said Angela Marsee, the Washita County District Attorney.
Cummings was remembered 40 years later as state prosecutors and family addressed the board.
Rojem’s attorneys had argued that evidence from a cup found near the Cummings’ front door all those years ago was not enough to link him to the murder.
“Everyone ignored the poor quality of the cup. It was a fuzzy, blurry print with, I would say, a third of the area, black, either black or white … where you can’t see anything,” said Paul McCausland, an attorney for Rojem.
The state revealed other evidence they said pointed to Rojem being the right suspect, including tire tracks in a field and a condom discovered next to the 7-year-old's body.
“It is no coincidence that three parts of one of these condoms were found at the crime scene, and the other including the used condom with Rojem’s DNA were found on the top of his trashcan,” said Jennifer Crabb, the assistant Attorney General.
Rojem, who had previously been convicted of raping two teenage girls in Michigan, appeared by video to address the board.
“I don’t deny that I went to prison. I learned my lesson and I left all that behind. I did not kidnap Layla, I did not rape Layla, and I did not murder Layla,” said Rojem.
Prosecutors said Rojem was angry at Layla Cummings because she reported that Rojem sexually abused her, leading to his divorce from the girl’s mother and his return to prison for violating his parole.
Rojem’s attorneys fought until the end, but that wasn’t enough, and the board unanimously reached a decision to deny clemency.
“I am pleased the Pardon and Parole Board denied clemency for the monster who savagely raped and murdered an innocent child and caused unimaginable suffering for her family," said Attorney General Gentner Drummond ahead of the execution. "Justice for Layla will be served when he is executed on June 27.”
A Washita County jury convicted Rojem in 1985 after just 45 minutes of deliberations. His previous death sentences were twice overturned by appellate courts because of trial errors. A Custer County jury ultimately handed him his third death sentence in 2007.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.