She married Richard Glossip this week at the Oklahoma State Penitentiary. He sits on death row.
Glossip (59) has narrowly escaped execution 3 times already and could be the next Oklahoma man to die after the state lifted a nearly 7-year moratorium on executions due to mishaps in his and other cases.
Rodger, 32-year-old Rodger is a paralegal who spent over a decade fighting for capital punishment. Rodger says this was one of the reasons why she didn't want her time wasted on marrying her new man.
Rodger said that Rich survived three execution attempts and may face a fourth. The one thing he has learned is to not take anything for granted... live in the moment." Rodger spoke to The Associated Press before Rodger wed Rodger Tuesday at a small ceremony held inside the Oklahoma State Penitentiary.
Rodger, a law student from Lutz, Florida said, "I believe both of us do an excellent job at that."
Glossip stated in a statement to the AP that "after all I have gone through, losing so many of my life, and everyone in it... I have been blessed beyond any imagination."
Robert Dunham, executive director at the Death Penalty Information Center, stated that although marriages between death row inmates are rare, they are not uncommon. He stated that the Loving v. Virginia ruling by the U.S. Supreme Court, which prohibited interracial marriages was now applicable to prisoners.
Dunham stated that marriage is one of the fundamental rights that prisoners can retain.
After being in prison, some of the most notorious prisoners in America have been married. Ted Bundy , a serial killer who was convicted of murder, married his fiancee while he was on Florida's death row. Erik Menendez was sentenced to life for the murder of their parents in 1989 at their Beverly Hills home. Both were also married in prison. Richard Ramirez was a serial killer who placed satanic signs at crime scenes and then mutilated victims' bodies in a reign of terror that lasted until the 1980s. He was on death row in California.
Oklahoma's marriage ceremonies are held twice a year for those who are in prison. They take place in March and September. If the county requires that the couple sign the county's marriage record, the inmate or the fiancee are responsible for all costs related to the marriage. Even though Oklahoma prohibits conjugal visits for newly married inmates Rodger stated that they were allowed to hold hands and kiss during Tuesday’s ceremony.
Glossip is now in his second prison marriage. He filed for divorce from Leigha Joy Jurasik of New Jersey last year, when Jurasik was 21. The couple divorced last year. Court records show that Jurasik did not attend a hearing in which a judge ordered her pay Glossip $100 per semaine for 85 weeks. This was to pay a $5,000 alimony award as well as $3,500 for Glossip’s legal fees. Jurasik stated in a statement that she believes Glossip took advantage and that she regrets ever having married him.
She said, "I am older and wiser than I was before my marriage ended." "I couldn't be happier to be on the opposite side of that."
Glossip is most famous for the landmark U.S. Supreme Court Case which bears his name. A split court ruled that the legal use of midazolam for lethal injections was constitutional in 2015.
Glossip's story attracted international attention when actress Susan Sarandon, who won an Academy Award for portraying Sister Helen Prejean as a death penalty opponent in Louisiana's 1995 film "Dead Man Walking", took up the cause of Glossip in real life. Prejean served as Glossip’s spiritual advisor and visited him often in prison.
Glossip was twice sentenced to death for ordering Barry Van Treese's January 1997 murder. Van Treese owned the Oklahoma City motel that Glossip used. Prosecutors claimed Justin Sneed, a motel hand, confessed to beating and robbing Van Treese but only after Glossip promised him $10,000. Sneed was the key witness in both Glossip's trials. He is currently serving a life sentence.
Glossip was twice within hours of receiving a lethal inject, when his execution was called off. In September 2015, he was granted a two-week reprieve to give his lawyer time to file an innocence claim. He was about to be taken to the execution chamber, when prison officials discovered that he had been given the wrong drug. The Oklahoma death penalty was suspended for nearly seven years, until last fall. He is now the lead plaintiff in the federal suit challenging the state's use of lethal injection as unconstitutional. Don Knight, another lawyer, seeks to overturn his conviction, which was based on a claim for innocence.
Sheila Isenberg recently completed a second edition her 1991 book "Women who Love Men Who Kill" and extensive interviews with women who are seeking relationships with convicted killers. She also interviewed psychiatrists and social workers who said that some women are attracted men who have committed particularly horrible crimes such as mass murderers or serial killers.
Isenberg stated that Richard Glossip is not a serial killer or a mass murderer but is still well-known.
Rodger reacted with a sneer at the suggestion Glossip’s fame was what attracted him to her. She claimed she had never considered marriage when Glossip was added to the list of prisoners to whom she sends Christmas cards each year.
In the end, letters became phone calls and correspondence, and Rodger stated that she and Glossip developed a strong connection.
She recalled, "We felt a sense of comfort and familiarity with one another like we've known each other for a lifetime."
Rodger stated that she isn't looking for attention, but rather wants to be focused on Glossip’s innocence.
She said, "I don't romanticize this situation." "There's nothing romantic about someone you love dying, even if it is a painful death."
