Stephen Peter MORIN

Classification: Serial killer
Characteristics: Robberies
Number of victims: 3
Date of murders: 1981
Date of birth: February 19, 1951
Victims profile: Carrie Marie Scott, 21 / Janna Bruce / Shelia Whalen
Method of murder: Shooting
Location: Texas/Colorado, USA
Status: Executed by lethal injection in Texas on March 13, 1985

Date of Execution:
March 13, 1985
Offender:
Stephen Peter Morin #712
Last Statement:
Heavenly Father, I give thanks for this time, for the time that we have been together, the fellowship in your world, the Christian family presented to me (He called the names of the personal witnesses.). Allow your holy spirit to flow as I know your love as been showered upon me. Forgive them for they know not what they do, as I know that you have forgiven me, as I have forgiven them. Lord Jesus, I commit my soul to you, I praise you, and I thank you.

Stephen Peter Morin (February 19, 1951 – March 13, 1985) was a serial-killer executed by lethal injection by the state of Texas.

Morin withdrew all appeals after pleading guilty to the 1981 capital murder of Carrie Marie Scott. Morin was later convicted of the killings of Janna Bruce in Corpus Christi and Shelia Whalen in Golden, Colorado. Morin said he never intended to kill Scott and pleaded with her to leave him alone but then he said something came over him and the gun went off.

Because of Morin’s heavy drug use, medical technicians searched for nearly 40 minutes to find a usable vein for the injection. Morin was pronounced dead 12:55 a.m. on March 13, 1985 by lethal injection, becoming the sixth man to be executed in Texas since the state began using lethal injections in 1982.

Stephen Peter Morin

Stephen Peter Morin was executed by lethal injection on March 13, 1985. Morin withdrew all appeals after pleading guilty to the 1981 capital murder of Carrie Marie Scott. Morin was later convicted of the killings of Janna Bruce in Corpus Christi and Shelia Whalen in Golden Colorado.

In the early morning hours of Dec. 11, 1981 in San Antonio, Morin shot and killed 21-year old Carrie Marie Scott in front of Maggie’s Restaurant, her place of employment. She interrupted Morin in the process of stealing her car. She confronted Morin and was shot.

“Morin said he never intended to kill Ms. Scott, he pleaded with her to leave him alone but then he said something came over him and the gun went off,” said Patricia Murrey, a close friend of Morin’s.

Later that day Morin abducted Margaret Palm from a local shopping center. Morin and Palm drove all day and Morin ended up boarding a bus to Austin from Kerrville.

Morin was apprehended in Austin ending a four-year FBI manhunt. Morin was a fixture on the FBI’s most wanted list for a number of years. At the time of his arrest Morin was a suspect in more than 30 violent crimes from coast to coast.

Morin, a self-proclaimed “born again” Christian, shocked the legal community by becoming only the second man in Texas history to plead guilty to capital murder. “We discussed all the options. Stephen chose to plead guilty and with the state’s case against him it was his best defense,” said Pete Torres, Morin’s defending attorney. “Morin’s new-found faith was significant in his decision to plead guilty and withdraw all appeals.”

Morin had no desire to fight his conviction or the death-penalty sentence. “Morin knew he was guilty and was accepting of whatever the judge thought he deserved, he was a changed man and if the Lord wanted him to remain on Earth or go home to heaven, Stephen was willing,” said Charles Galloway, a friend of Morin’s.

Up until the time of his death, Morin remained a suspect in over 30 unsolved cases around the nation. He chose to remain quiet on those cases. “Morin never discussed those cases with me until they came up in litigation, and even then he was and unclear when discussing them,” Torres said. “Stephen was involved in an awful lot but he told me he honestly had no recollection of any crimes he may have committed, Murrey said. “It is as though that whole part of his life has been blanked from his memory.”.

Morin led a bible study on death row and received a degree in biblical teachings. Morin looked forward to his execution date and served as an inspiration to the other inmates on death row. “Stephen was prepared and referred to his execution as a graduation day,” said Murrey. “We were the first to see Stephen that day and all day he kept joking and saying this was a ‘great day,” Galloway said.

Because of Morin’s heavy drug use, medical technicians searched for nearly 40 minutes to find a usable vein for the injection. Morin was pronounced dead at 12:55 a.m. March 13, 1985, becoming the sixth man be executed in Texas since the state began using lethal injections in 1982.