Missouri Executes Man After Appeals Denied

Missouri has executed a man who was convicted of killing a jeweler during a 1991 robbery. It was the state's third lethal injected in as many months.

Herbert Smulls had been scheduled to die at 12:01 a.m. Wednesday, but the U.S. Supreme Court issued a temporary stay late Tuesday.

Wednesday saw numerous appeals from Smulls' attorney questioning the secretive nature of how the state obtains the execution drug, but all were denied.

Smulls was convicted of killing Stephen Honickman during a robbery at his jewelry shop in suburban St. Louis on July 27, 1991. Honickman's wife was badly injured but survived.

He was pronounced dead at 10:20 p.m. Wednesday, nine minutes after the execution process began.