The death sentences of three prison inmates have been commuted by the State Supreme Court to life in prison without parole. The Court notes federal court precedent in setting aside the penalties for Antonio Richardson, Keith Smith, and Andre Morrow. Earlier rulings have held that a person cannot be sentenced to death unless a jury recommends death. Richardson was involved in the deaths of two sisters who were raped and thrown off a St. Louis bridge. Smith killed a minister he sometimes stayed with, then killed the minister’s housekeeper. Morrow killed two people after smoking cocaine. Richardson had been scheduled for execution in March of 2001 but the United States Supreme Court stayed that execution.
