[2][3] The attack came to national attention due to its gruesome nature, which followed a well-publicized recent series of beheadings carried out by the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS).
He then drove to the plant's main distribution center, crashed into a parked car,[9][10] and entered the front administrative office area.
[16] 43-year-old Traci Johnson, the injured victim, was treated at the University of Oklahoma Medical Center for multiple stab wounds and survived her injuries.
[9] The weapon he used in the attack was a 10-inch work knife used by employees to cut lettuce and other vegetables, allegedly acquired from his home.
[9][18] County District Attorney Greg Mashburn noted that Nolen reportedly had three specific targets for the attack, including Johnson.
Nolen was shot and wounded during the attack by the company's Chief Operating Officer, a reserve deputy who happened to be armed.
[19] Nolen completed his prison sentence for drug offenses and assault in March 2013; shortly afterward, he converted to Islam.
[13][16] In their search warrant requests, police reported that witnesses had stated "Nolen had several previous disagreements and arguments with employees," while describing him as becoming increasingly violent, disrespectful, and aggressive towards his co-workers.
Because of the brutal manner of death and the fact that the attack followed a series of high-profile videotaped beheadings carried out by Islamic State (ISIS) militants in the Middle East, Moore police asked the FBI to assist in the investigation.
[19] Although Nolen attended a Baptist church as a youth, Oklahoma prison system records listed his religion as Islam.
"[2] Using his Islamic name, "Jah'Keem Yisrael" his Facebook page featured photos of the Taliban, Osama bin Laden, as well as an image of a partially decapitated man with someone standing over him, pulling his head back to show the wound.
[26] A paramedic who responded to the scene testified that, in a conversation in the back of the ambulance after the attack, Nolen was calm, attentive, and answered questions,[27] supporting their theory that Nolan was able to distinguish between right and wrong.
"[26] In the recording, Nolen called Johnson "a slave for the devil" and indicated that his action was at least in part racially motivated: "I beat on Caucasians.
"[26] The district attorney expressed his view that Nolen was motivated more by racial resentment, and by a desire to "get revenge" against former co-workers, than by his religious beliefs and recent conversion to Islam.
[29][30] She also found Nolen to be intellectually impaired, with an IQ of 69; could only express himself at the level of a "child younger than 7"; and refused to cooperate with his lawyers.
[33][5] On December 15, 2017, Cleveland County District Judge Lori Walkley followed the jury's recommendation, and sentenced Nolen to death by lethal injection.