Richard Rojem Jr., an Oklahoma man convicted of raping and murdering his former stepdaughter in 1984, was executed on Thursday morning after choosing pizza and ice cream for his final meal. He asked for two small double-cheese, double-pepperoni pizzas from Little Caesars, two cups of vanilla ice cream, and Vernors ginger ale.
Rojem, 66, received a three-drug lethal injection at Oklahoma State Penitentiary and was pronounced dead at 10:16 a.m. He did not request a stay of execution and had no last words beyond saying his goodbyes.
This was Oklahoma’s 13th execution since resuming capital punishment in 2021. Rojem had been in prison since 1985 and was the longest-serving inmate on the state’s death row.
He had maintained his innocence in the murder of his former stepdaughter, Layla Cummings, whose body was found raped and stabbed in a field in 1984. Attorney General Gentner Drummond described Rojem’s execution as justice for Layla Cummings, bringing some comfort to her family after nearly 40 years of suffering.
Before the murder, Rojem had served time in Michigan for raping two teenage girls. Despite arguments from his attorneys about DNA evidence, Rojem was convicted based on other evidence linking him to the crime scene. His previous death sentences were overturned due to trial errors before he received a final sentence in 2007.
Rojem had married Layla’s mother while in prison for his previous crimes. In a statement read after his execution, Layla’s mother expressed closure, remembering her daughter and the justice served by his execution.
During his time in prison, Rojem converted to Zen Buddhism and reflected on his past actions, stating he had learned from his mistakes and sought to leave his earlier life behind.