Former death row inmate Richard Glossip pleaded guilty to accessory to first-degree murder after the fact in an Oklahoma County courtroom Thursday afternoon, throwing out the chance of a third jury trial in his decades-long case.
Glossip entered the plea in an agreement with state prosecutors, who withdrew a first-degree murder charge from his case during the hearing.
The lesser charge carries a minimum sentence of five years and a maximum sentence of 45 years. Judge Natalie Mai is scheduled to decide Glossip's sentence in December, after each side makes its case for his imprisonment or release.
Glossip spent nearly 30 years in prison for the 1997 killing of Barry Van Treese. Since he was first convicted of murder in 1998, Glossip has been scheduled for execution nine times and has sat down to eat his "last meal" three times.
Glossip maintained his innocence and eventually appealed his case all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court. Supreme Court justices threw out Glossip's murder conviction in February 2025, writing he was "entitled to a new trial" because of prosecutorial misconduct.
Evidence implicating Glossip in court came from Justin Sneed, a handyman who confessed to bludgeoning Van Treese to death because Glossip promised to pay him $10,000. Sneed avoided the death penalty in exchange for his testimony against Glossip, but further investigations revealed Sneed lied under oath and prosecutors withheld information about his character and poor mental health from the jury.
Members of the Van Treese family were present for Thursday's proceedings, watching from the jury box as Glossip moved back and forth from the stand.
Prosecutors said dropping the first-degree murder charge was an "incredibly difficult decision" for the family, but the complications of retrying a 30-year-old case were too great. Some witnesses have died, and evidence has disappeared over time, a state prosecutor said, so moving forward was the best possible way to secure a conviction and additional prison time for Glossip.
Following Glossip's guilty plea, Attorney General Genter Drummond released a statement saying his office and the Van Treese family hope the judge will issue the maximum 45-year sentence.
"Today, Richard Glossip finally took some measure of responsibility for the murder of Barry Van Treese," Drummond said. "While allowing Glossip to plead guilty to the lesser-related charge of accessory to first-degree murder was a difficult decision for me and, more importantly, the Van Treese family, we both recognize that this path ensures a conviction related to Mr. Van Treese's murder and gives us the best chance to secure additional prison time for Glossip."
After the Supreme Court sent the case back, Drummond announced plans to retry Glossip, saying he was confident there was sufficient evidence to secure a conviction even though decades had passed.
Before his sentencing hearing in December, Glossip will remain out on bond. He was released from jail earlier this year after reality TV star and influencer Kim Kardashian helped pay for his bail.
Don Knight, one of Glossip's attorneys, said the plea is not an admission of guilt and that Glossip should not have to spend another day in prison.
"After almost 30 years of being convicted of a crime that Mr. Glossip never, ever committed, the state has finally decided to dismiss the first-degree murder charge against Mr. Glossip," he told the press after the hearing. "We ended up entering a plea today with the specific purpose of getting this matter behind Mr. Glossip so he can get on with his life."
Glossip and his wife, Lea Glossip, addressed reporters after leaving the courtroom.
"We're both people of faith," Lea Glossip said. "And we'll continue praying that this is what finally brings this case to a close after 30 years."
Depending on his sentence, Glossip could avoid prison time altogether. While death row inmates are not eligible for credit for good behavior, he has credit from the nearly three decades he has already spent behind bars.
"I'm grateful for my attorneys and all their hard work, and I'm grateful for Lea for standing by my side," Richard Glossip said, squeezing his wife's hand.
This report was produced by the Oklahoma Public Media Exchange, a collaboration of public media organizations. Help support collaborative journalism by donating at the link at the top of this webpage.
