PARCHMAN, Miss. — The U.S. Supreme Court refused to block the execution of a convicted killer, and Mississippi officials were expected to put him to death by lethal injection on Thursday evening.
William Mitchell, 61, was convicted in the Nov. 21, 1995, slaying of Patty Milliken. Milliken, 38, disappeared after walking out of the Majik Mart convenience store in Biloxi where she worked to have a cigarette with Mitchell.
Milliken's body was found the next day under a bridge. She had been "strangled, beaten, sexually assaulted and repeatedly run over by a vehicle," according to court records. Mitchell was convicted of capital murder in 1998.
Earlier on Thursday, the Mississippi Supreme Court, in a 5-4 ruling, denied Mitchell's request for a stay.
Gov. Phil Bryant issued a statement that he would not halt the execution.
"After reviewing the case of William Mitchell and the crime he committed, I will not stand in the way of the scheduled execution. My thoughts and prayers are with the family and friends of Patty Milliken, who fell victim to this horrible act of violence," Bryant said in the statement.
Corrections Commissioner Chris Epps said Mitchell was talkative earlier in the day.
"Just small talk ... nothing about what he was on death row for," Epps said.
Epps said Mitchell didn't want any family members to witness the execution. He said Mitchell's lawyers would be present. Mitchell was visited Thursday by a brother and two sisters.
Mitchell's body will be turned over to his sister Gerolyn Mitchell and Brinson Funeral Home in Cleveland, Miss.
Two members of Patty Milliken's family — son, Williams Burns; and a sister, Rosemary Riley — will witness the execution.
"He's talked about his incarceration record. He has been us three times in various institutions in the state. He's talkative but not about the crime," Epps said of his conversation with Mitchell.
Mitchell's last meal request was for fried shrimp and oysters, ranch dressing, two fried chicken breasts, a strawberry shake and a soft drink. Epps said Mitchell ate very little of the meal, but asked for a sedative.
Court records show Mitchell, had been out of prison on parole for less than a year for a 1974 murder when he was charged with raping and killing Milliken.
According to court records, Mitchell, as a young adult, served in the Army but by the 1990s, he had a long criminal record and had spent much of his adult life behind bars. He was charged twice with beating women in 1973. In 1974, he was charged with killing a family friend and stabbing her daughter.
In his petition to the Supreme Court, Mitchell had argued the Mississippi courts denied his right to due process by failing to address his "well-pled challenge" to his lawyers' inadequate representation. He said the courts just ignored the issue by saying it had already been adjudicated elsewhere.
Mississippi Attorney General Jim Hood in his brief to the Supreme Court said the issues raised by Mitchell were nothing new and were rejected by other courts.