The planned Nov. 10 execution by firing squad of Ralph Menzies has been canceled after a federal judge signed a stay of his execution Tuesday.
The stay order by U.S. District Judge Ted Stewart sets the stage for a federal appeal that could keep the convicted kidnapper and killer on death row for years to come.
While not unexpected — the state did not object and Menzies still has a legal right to challenge his conviction at the federal level — the decision also keeps justice at bay for the family of his victim, Maurine Hunsaker.
Hunsaker's children were 10, 15 months and 6 months old when she was taken from a Kearns gas station and held captive. Two days later, the 26-year-old was found tied to a tree in Big Cottonwood Canyon. Her throat had been slit.
Police linked Menzies to Maurine Hunsaker's death after they found her identification cards in a room at the Salt Lake County Jail where Menzies had been held after being arrested for an alleged theft. Menzies was convicted of the kidnapping and killing in 1988, although he has always maintained his innocence.