A request from the parole board submitted to the Secretary of State puts a new date for Underwood’s clemency hearing on the calendar – this Friday.
A shakeup of Oklahoma’s Pardon and Parole Board has delayed the 44-year-old’s clemency hearing twice already this month. The hearing is necessary before an execution, which Underwood is scheduled for on Dec. 19.
The Oklahoma Open Meeting Act requires all public bodies to release meeting plans 48 hours in advance.
But the rescheduled meeting will only move forward with a ruling from the 10th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals. Earlier this week, it blocked the Oklahoma Pardon and Parole Board from proceeding.
Underwood’s attorneys argue he is entitled to a fair and impartial hearing before a full board of five members.
The board currently only has four. Stitt appointed Tulsa lawyer Susan H. Stava to the board. No announcements have been made related to the remaining vacancy.
The latest change puts pressure on the appellate court to respond but does not have legal standing.
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