Roberts facing lethal injection for 1988 killing

McALESTER, Okla. (AP) -- Convicted killer Michael Donald Roberts'12-year stay on death row neared an end Wednesday with his execution hours away and a last minute appeal pending before the 10th U.S.

Wednesday, February 9th 2000, 12:00 am

By: News On 6

McALESTER, Okla. (AP) -- Convicted killer Michael Donald Roberts'12-year stay on death row neared an end Wednesday with his execution hours away and a last minute appeal pending before the 10th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals. "We don't expect any obstacles to the execution," Gerald Adams, spokesman for the attorney general's office, said.

But attorneys for Roberts waited on word on a last minute appeal filed with the 10th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, said attorney Gary Chubbuck. The U.S. Supreme Court denied Roberts' request for a stay of execution as well as a separate appeal Wednesday afternoon. Chubbuck and other attorneys also have sent a letter to Gov. Frank Keating asking for a 60-day death penalty reprieve so a study can examine whether the death penalty is being applied fairly. A reprieve would benefit not only Roberts, but Chubbuck's clients, Loyd Winford LaFevers and Kelly Lamont Rogers, who are scheduled for execution next month. "We're asking for a moratorium, to suspend executions for awhile and get studies to make sure we're doing this right," Chubbuck said.

But Keating rejected the request Wednesday in a letter to Chubbuck and others in which he said "I do not share the opinion that the Oklahoma system of capital litigation is unreliable." "Executions are the exception to the rule in Oklahoma," Keating said. "In Oklahoma, the death penalty is imposed in less than 2 percent of all homicide cases. An even smaller percentage result in actual executions. "I have reviewed the evidentiary concerns regarding inmate Roberts and do not believe a delay is necessary. I will consider the LaFevers and Rogers case after review by the Pardon and Parole Board..."

He said he does not have authority "to grant clemency without a positive recommendation by the Pardon and Parole Board." "An overwhelming majority of Oklahomans support the death penalty and its use on the limited cases authorized by law," Keating said. "The members of our Bar Association and judiciary that work on these cases are dedicated officers of the court for whom I have great respect and admiration. I see no reason to question the results produced by their efforts."

Roberts was to be the 105th inmate executed in Oklahoma and the 22nd in the state since the U.S. Supreme Court reinstated the death penalty in 1977. He was convicted for the January 1988 murder of 80-year-old Lula Mae Brooks. Roberts lived three houses down from Brooks in northwest Oklahoma City and was accused of stabbing Brooks and slitting her throat during a burglary of her home.

Roberts was accused of a series of robberies of elderly residents in northwest Oklahoma City in late 1987 and early 1988. In a police confession, Robert had said he saw the door open to Brooks' house and went inside. He claimed he stabbed Brooks when she came at him with a knife. He said he cut her throat with another knife when she charged him a second time.

Roberts said he tossed Brooks on the floor. He said she then asked him to "finish the job, finish the job." Police and prosecutors said Brooks had lost too much blood to speak and that Roberts killed Brooks because she could identify him.

Roberts recanted his earlier confession during his trial. The confession included an admission to 19 other robberies. He told jurors he confessed because detectives offered him a 15-year sentence to clear up the killing and robberies. Detectives denied Roberts' claim.

A detective who worked the case had indicated he may attend the execution, Adams said. None of Brooks' family was expected. Three people indicated they might witness the execution for Roberts, a prison spokesman said. For a last meal, Roberts requested three pounds of barbecued beef ribs, six dinner rolls, one Cornish hen, one cheeseburger, a 7-Up and a strawberry drink.