NORMAN, Okla. (KFOR) A University of Oklahoma law student has started an online petition calling for an adjunct professor’s removal following a Supreme Court decision on Richard Glossip’s case.

Last week the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in a majority that Glossip, although previously convicted and sentenced to death for the 1997 murder of his boss Barry Van Treese, should get a new trial because of prosecutorial misconduct.

The decision tosses out the conviction and death sentence. Connie Smothermon, an adjunct professor at OU law and Oklahoma City University law, was the leader prosecutor on the case.

The SCOTUS ruling on the case said Smothermon, the prosecution, knew her star witness, Justin Sneed, had lied under oath. The ruling also notes that the State of Oklahoma admitted the alleged false testimony combined with other “unspecified cumulative errors” warrant post conviction relief.

“They introduced knowingly false statements on the stand and failed to correct those,” said OU law student Travis Handler, when asked for his insight on the ruling. “And we also know, although the Supreme Court’s opinion does not really address this as much, that there were some, they’re called Brady violations. So failure to turn over evidence that might have been favorable to the defense.”

Handler published an online petition February 27 calling for Smothermon’s removal as an adjunct professor at both of the universities she teaches. News 4 spoke with several OU law students on Monday who said they were either aware of the petition or previous information tied to Smothermon’s role in the case.

“I think something needs to be done,” said OU law student Emma Spotanski. “But again, I mean, you hear the decision from the Supreme Court saying what you did was wrong. I think that’s some accountability there by itself.”

Smothermon’s OU bio says she came to the college of law in 2004 and also previously worked for the Oklahoma County District Attorney’s Office heading the Domestic Violence Prosecution Unit.

“There’s no making Richard Glossip whole,” said Handler. “There’s no fixing, frankly, what happened to Barry Van Treese and his family, which is horrendous, but within our control is ensuring that the people who teach here are accountable and that they adhere to the same principles that we respect, which is justice and fairness and the rule of law.”

Handler said much of the misconduct discussed in the ruling has been far from secret on the OU law campus, touching on a report released in 2022 by international law firm, Reed Smith.

“It was released at that point that there had been several really really troubling allegations about the prosecution’s conduct during that trial,” said Handler.

The report concluded that crime scene evidence was destroyed, naming Smothermon. It also said that no “reasonable juror” would have convicted Glossip in the murder case.

Handler says the campus culture he experienced in the report’s aftermath was to just accept it; but he felt a shift with the Supreme Court opinion being released.

“I sort of figured that it was a good time, momentum wise, to try and do the right thing, at least in some small amount,” said Handler.

Handler says he doesn’t want to “malign the administration” noting that OU Dean of Law Anna Carpenter inherited “this problem.” He says generally adjuncts are brought on for very brief terms and situations like these can raise questions as to whether or not the review of Smothermon’s background was as exhaustive as it need to be.

“I think regardless of her being an adjunct, this case is an exception because it was so well documented, because you had the Reed Smith report in 2022,” said Handler. “It is hard for me, and again, not maligning anybody here, I want to make that clear. It is hard for me to understand how anybody could have not known about this and they allow her to stay on.”

News 4 reached out to a source Monday in attempt to make contact with Smothermon. That source confirmed Smothermon received News 4’s request for comment but as of the date of publication News 4 never heard back.

News 4 reached out to the University of Oklahoma for comment. A spokesperson confirmed the university is aware of the SCOTUS decision but said the university did not comment on personnel matters.

It’s also important to note during a news conference last week Attorney General Gentner Drummond announced he does not plan to pursue criminal charges against the prosecution tied to Glossip’s case. Drummond and Oklahoma County District Attorney Vicki Behenna’s office are collaborating to decide the best way to move forward after the SCOTUS decision. Handler says that doesn’t mean he believes Smothermon shouldn’t be held accountable.

“I think electing to keep her on choosing to keep her on would be inconsistent with a lot of those principles that make me so proud to be a student here,” said Handler.