Kevin Ray Underwood is set to become the 25th person executed in the United States this year after Oklahoma's Pardon and Parole Board denied his clemency plea. The decision, made unanimously on Friday, paves the way for Underwood's execution on Thursday, coinciding with his 45th birthday.
Underwood was convicted of the brutal killing of 10-year-old Jamie Rose Bolin in 2006. The girl was a neighbor in his Purcell apartment complex. He confessed to luring her into his apartment, where he struck her with a cutting board and suffocated her. The crime was driven by a disturbing cannibalistic fantasy, Underwood later admitted.
During the hearing, Underwood apologized via a video feed from the Oklahoma State Penitentiary. "I would like to apologize to the victim's family, to my own family, and to everyone in that room today that had to hear the horrible details of what I did," he said. "I can't believe I did those things. The person I was in the weeks leading up to that event is not who I am now."
In a videotaped confession played for the board, Underwood admitted he had planned to decapitate Jamie in his bathtub and eat parts of her body but abandoned those plans. Assistant Attorney General Aspen Layman described the crime as "one of the most notorious and depraved murders in Oklahoma history."
"Mr. Underwood chose Jamie because he thought that she was small and defenseless and easy prey," Layman told the board. "And while we, as an enlightened society, can give grace to those struggling with mental illness, we can still expect them to refrain from planning the murder, rape, torture, and cannibalism of 10-year-old little girls."
Underwood's defense team argued for clemency based on his history of abuse and significant mental health challenges. They pointed to diagnoses of autism, obsessive-compulsive disorder, bipolar and panic disorders, post-traumatic stress disorder, schizotypal personality disorder, and other conditions. His mother, Connie Underwood, tearfully pleaded for mercy on his behalf.
"I can't imagine the heartache the family of that precious girl is living with every single day," she said. "I wish we understood his pain before it led to this tragedy."
Several members of Jamie's family attended the hearing and urged the board to deny clemency. Her father, Curtis Bolin, was too overcome with emotion to speak, holding his head in his hands before saying, "I'm sorry, I can't."
Underwood's execution will take place at the Oklahoma State Penitentiary in McAlester. It will be carried out using a three-drug lethal injection, marking the state's fourth execution of the year.
Meanwhile, Indiana is also preparing for its first execution in 15 years. Joseph Corcoran, convicted of killing four men in 1997, is scheduled to be executed on Wednesday. If both executions proceed, it will bring the national total for 2024 to 25.
Underwood's case has reignited discussions about mental health and the justice system, but the Oklahoma board's decision reflects a firm stance on the severity of his crime.
