Opinion ID: 1423838
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: The underlying crime and prior appeals

Text: Steven Parkus killed a fellow inmate at the Missouri state penitentiary. He was convicted of first degree murder and sentenced to death. This Court affirmed that judgment on direct appeal, State v. Parkus, 753 S.W.2d 881 (Mo. banc 1988), and affirmed the judgment denying post-conviction relief, Parkus v. State, 781 S.W.2d 545 (Mo. banc 1989). Thereafter, Parkus sought relief in various federal courts  all to no avail. In 1999, Missouri's governor issued an executive order staying Parkus' execution until a final determination could be made regarding whether Parkus had a mental disease or defect that would exclude him from execution. The circuit court of Washington County began an inquiry into Parkus' mental fitness for execution, and the court issued orders permitting physicians to evaluate Parkus.