U.S. Supreme Court Orders Review Of Missouri Death Sentence Case

The United States Supreme Court has ordered a review of the death sentence of a man convicted in a St. Louis bank robbery. A security guard was killed during the holdup. A state appeals court has been ordered to look again at the conviction of Billie J. Allen, which it upheld earlier. The Supreme Court has told the appeals court to consider Allen’s conviction and sentence on the basis of its ruling last week that judges cannot assess the death penalty without a jury recommendation.