Bio

Melvin Joseph Geary was born in 1931. In February 1973, while under the influence of alcohol, he murdered 38-year-old Annette Morris in Las Vegas, Nevada, by stabbing her with a boning knife. He was convicted of her murder and sentenced to serve life in prison without the possibility of parole; the state Pardons Board later commuted this sentence to life with the possibility of parole. After serving thirteen years, Geary was formally paroled in March 1986. In the years that followed, he was reportedly paroled and reincarcerated on multiple occasions for parole violations related to his continued drinking, before eventually being released again closer to 1992.

By 1990, Geary had resumed drinking heavily and lost a series of jobs working as a chef for casinos in Sparks, Nevada. By July 1992, he was homeless, unemployed, and drinking constantly. Through an acquaintance, he was referred to Edward Theodore Colvin, 71, a retired, recovered alcoholic in Reno who was known for taking in people who were down on their luck and offering them a place to stay while they got back on their feet; Colvin reportedly spoke harshly to those he helped as a way of motivating them to take control of their lives.

Murder Story

Geary had lived with Colvin for only a few days when, in July 1992, in a drunken rage after Colvin spoke harshly to him, Geary stabbed him repeatedly with a boning knife. Colvin died from stab wounds to his face and neck, ultimately drowning in his own blood. Money was found missing from Colvin's pocket after the killing. Geary later said he had no memory of committing the crime due to an alcoholic blackout; a couple of days later, upon realizing what he had done, he called the police himself.

Geary was convicted of first-degree murder with the use of a deadly weapon and was sentenced to death in 1993. The jury found three aggravating circumstances: that the murder was committed while he was under a sentence of imprisonment (parole from the Morris murder); that it was committed by someone previously convicted of another murder; and that it was committed randomly, without apparent motive. The Nevada Supreme Court affirmed his conviction but reversed the death sentence in 1996, finding an error in the original penalty hearing, and remanded the case for a new sentencing proceeding.

In October 1998, following a new penalty hearing before a Washoe District Court jury that deliberated approximately four hours, Geary was again sentenced to death. His public defender, Steve Gregory, unsuccessfully sought a mistrial after a prosecutor's remark that Geary had "chosen death"; District Judge Margaret Springgate denied the motion. Geary subsequently informed the court he wished to waive his direct appeal, and after being found competent to make that decision, an automatic appeal proceeded regardless, as required by law. The Nevada Supreme Court affirmed this second death sentence on April 26, 1999 (Geary v. State, 115 Nev. 79). Geary's subsequent appeals to the Nevada Supreme Court and the U.S. Supreme Court were unsuccessful.

Melvin Geary suffered a stroke at Ely State Prison and was taken to University Medical Center in Las Vegas before being transferred to High Desert State Prison near Indian Springs, Nevada. He died there on May 28, 2002, at age 71, shortly before noon. Prison spokesman Glen Whorton said his death was expected given the severity of his medical condition. He was never executed.