Michael Rimmer execution delayed
The execution of Michael Rimmer, the convicted killer whose case has been the subject of years of trials and appeals in Memphis and at the state level, has been delayed, the Tennessee Department of Correction confirmed Monday.
Rimmer had been scheduled to die on May 10. But the Tennessee Department of Correction said the execution had been called off for now. "Mr. Rimmer has received a stay," department representative Dorinda Carter wrote in an email.
It wasn't immediately clear what had led to the stay of execution. Rimmer's attorney had recently filed a fresh petition for post-conviction relief.
A hearing over his petition for post conviction relief is scheduled Friday before Criminal Court Judge Chris Craft, according to online court records.
Rimmer was accused of killing his former girlfriend Ricci Ellsworth, who disappeared from her job at a Memphis motel in 1997. Her body was never found.
A jury convicted him in 1998, and he was sentenced to death, but he won a new trial.
The new trial took place in 2016, and Rimmer was again found guilty by a jury again.
During that 2016 trial, special prosecutor Rachel Sobrero argued that Rimmer followed through on prior threats to kill Ellsworth. DNA from blood at the crime scene in Ellsworth's disappearance matched blood later found in Rimmer's car, according to testimony during the trial.
“He made her body disappear,” she said at the time.
Rimmer had previously been convicted of raping Ellis.
During the 2016 trial, defense attorney Robert Parris argued it's possible Ellsworth might not even be dead. There is no body, murder weapon or identification of Rimmer at the scene by anyone, Parris said at the time.
“You should demand that if they're going to ask you not just to convict somebody of the highest crime of this state, but ask you to sign his death warrant, you've got to have more than that,” Parris said. “This is a joke.”
Appeals over Rimmer's conviction and execution has continued for years. In one of the most recent actions, his legal team filed a petition for post-conviction relief on April 7, according to online records.
Liz Schubauer contributed to this article.
Investigative reporter Daniel Connolly welcomes tips and comments from the public. Reach him at 529-5296, daniel.connolly@commercialappeal.com, or on Twitter at @danielconnolly.