The infamous Sirloin Stockade killer has been granted parole. But the Oklahoma Pardon and Parole Board wants to make clear this is not a release. There will not be another opportunity for release until Verna Stafford is 88 years old.
In 1978, Roger Dale Stafford, his wife, Verna, and brother, Harold, murdered six Sirloin Stockade employees in Oklahoma City.
They were also responsible for killing a family of three in a staged car breakdown.
Roger was executed in 1995. Harold died in a Tulsa motorcycle accident before any arrest.
Verna received two life sentences, avoiding the death penalty in exchange for testifying against her husband.
On August 10, multiple victims’ family members showed up at the regular parole meeting to ask the board to deny the parole for Stafford’s first life sentence.
Tuesday, Stafford spoke from prison. Her son, Timothy Johnson, listened via Zoom.
“I just want you to know that I am very sorry for what happened,” said Stafford. “I wish I had been stronger and not so controlled that I literally did everything he asked me to do.”
Stafford’s representative also spoke of her exemplary behavior behind bars, adding she has had four misconducts, the last one 39 years ago.
By law, the Department of Corrections is currently required to put Stafford on a parole request docket every three years.
One board member felt the public was misunderstanding the process.
“It is not her doing; she’s never petitioned or asked to be put on a docket,” he said. “We are not talking about releasing Ms. Stafford; we never have been.”
In a 3-2 vote, the board granted parole, moving her into her second life sentence. Stafford will not be allowed another hearing for 15 years.
Families argue the result sends the wrong message and any semblance of a win furthers trauma.
The Pardon and Parole Board shared this quote.
"At its August 2026 meeting, the Pardon and Parole Board was unified in condemning Verna Stafford's participation in a horrific crime spree but divided on the appropriate use of its parole recommendation authority 48 years after those crimes. That difference was reflected in a 3-2 vote, as well as the individual viewpoints expressed by members during deliberations.
If the Board’s recommendation is followed, Ms. Stafford will be ineligible for parole consideration on her next life sentence for 15 years, at the age of 88 years old. In reaching its recommendation, the Board gave special consideration to victims' families by granting additional time for objection, members on both sides expressed earnest belief that their votes served the public interest, and the Board clearly communicated that recommending Ms. Stafford's release was neither legally permissible nor consistent with its intentions."
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