A 'delusional murderer' who killed his in-laws with such ferocity that he showered his estranged wife and three-year-old daughter in blood will be put to death on Wednesday despite opposition. Scott Panetti was heavily armed with his head shaved and wearing camouflage when he shot and killed his in-laws at their Texas Hill Country home in 1992. But his attorneys want to get him off death row, or, in the very least, get his execution date on December 3, postponed so that he can undergo further psychological testing. Delusional: In this Nov. 19, 1999 file photo, Texas death row inmate Scott Panetti talks during a prison interview in Huntsville, Texas, where he is on death row for the 1992 murder of his wife's parents . His legal team want to determine if he's competent to be put to death. Yet no one disputes that he is highly dangerous and delusional. Panetti himself acknowledged during his 1995 capital murder trial that he had killed Joe and Amanda Alvarado. Dressed as a cowboy, he acted as his own attorney, believing only an insane person could prove an insanity defense. Jurors convicted him and sentenced him to death, and he is scheduled to die on Wednesday. However, Panetti's attorneys believe his case raises questions about the legality of executing the mentally ill — an issue the U.S. Supreme Court has previously considered. Kathryn Kase, one of his lawyers said: 'From our perspective, this has been like a slow-moving train wreck since 1995.' A diagnosed paranoid schizophrenic, Panetti had been hospitalized for mental illness more than a dozen times in the decade leading up to the September 1992 killings of the Alvarados. A 2007 Supreme Court review of Panetti's case tweaked the criteria for executing those with severe mental disorders. It required inmates to not only know that they are being punished, but to also have a 'rational understanding' of their punishment. Providing little guidance other than requiring a fair hearing for presentation of psychiatric evidence to consider insanity claims, the justices returned Panetti's case to lower federal courts, which ultimately found him competent. Execution: Panetti's execution is set for December 3, but his attorneys want the death date withdrawn or at least delayed to allow for a new round of psychological testing . Seven years since his last mental evaluation, Panetti is showing increasingly aberrant delusional behavior on death row. Kase, who visited him a few weeks ago believes his punishment is part of a satanic conspiracy to prevent him from preaching the Gospel. 'He cannot appreciate why Texas seeks to execute him,' Kase said. 'You have to have a rational as well as factual understanding of why you're being executed. 'In Mr. Panetti's case, his understanding is the state wants to prevent him from preaching the Gospel on death row and saving their souls. And clearly that's not factual or rational.' Prosecutors argue that Panetti's claims are without merit and that defense attorneys have had years to arrange new evaluations. Lucy Wilke, an assistant district attorney in Gillespie County, where Panetti was tried, said that as recently as November 4, Panetti discussed Election Day politics during a prison visit with relatives. 'At the very least, it is clear that Panetti is oriented to time and place, a fact which his lawyers have disputed,' she said in a filing last week to the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals. It has refused to stop the execution and Panetti's case now is back before a federal appeals court. Court-appointed medical experts for the state have long said they suspect some of Panetti's bizarre behavior was contrived. Panetti recently declined to be interviewed. He said: 'I respectfully decline, Acts 28.' The Biblical chapter in the Acts of the Apostles includes a reference to St. Paul as a prisoner of the Romans and of Paul successfully teaching the Gospel.
Scott Panetti killed his in-laws at their Texas Hill Country home in 1992 .
His attorneys want to get him off death row or his execution date postponed .
His legal team want to determine if he's competent to be put to death .
Jurors convicted him and sentenced him to death on December 3 .
But his attorneys said he thinks he's being executed for preaching the Bible .
A 'delusional murderer' who killed his in-laws with such ferocity that he showered his estranged wife and three-year-old daughter in blood will be put to death on Wednesday despite opposition. Scott Panetti was heavily armed with his head shaved and wearing camouflage when he shot and killed his in-laws at their Texas Hill Country home in 1992. But his attorneys want to get him off death row, or, in the very least, get his execution date on December 3, postponed so that he can undergo further psychological testing. Delusional: In this Nov. 19, 1999 file photo, Texas death row inmate Scott Panetti talks during a prison interview in Huntsville, Texas, where he is on death row for the 1992 murder of his wife's parents . His legal team want to determine if he's competent to be put to death. Yet no one disputes that he is highly dangerous and delusional. Panetti himself acknowledged during his 1995 capital murder trial that he had killed Joe and Amanda Alvarado. Dressed as a cowboy, he acted as his own attorney, believing only an insane person could prove an insanity defense. Jurors convicted him and sentenced him to death, and he is scheduled to die on Wednesday. However, Panetti's attorneys believe his case raises questions about the legality of executing the mentally ill — an issue the U.S. Supreme Court has previously considered. Kathryn Kase, one of his lawyers said: 'From our perspective, this has been like a slow-moving train wreck since 1995.' A diagnosed paranoid schizophrenic, Panetti had been hospitalized for mental illness more than a dozen times in the decade leading up to the September 1992 killings of the Alvarados. A 2007 Supreme Court review of Panetti's case tweaked the criteria for executing those with severe mental disorders. It required inmates to not only know that they are being punished, but to also have a 'rational understanding' of their punishment. Providing little guidance other than requiring a fair hearing for presentation of psychiatric evidence to consider insanity claims, the justices returned Panetti's case to lower federal courts, which ultimately found him competent. Execution: Panetti's execution is set for December 3, but his attorneys want the death date withdrawn or at least delayed to allow for a new round of psychological testing . Seven years since his last mental evaluation, Panetti is showing increasingly aberrant delusional behavior on death row. Kase, who visited him a few weeks ago believes his punishment is part of a satanic conspiracy to prevent him from preaching the Gospel. 'He cannot appreciate why Texas seeks to execute him,' Kase said. 'You have to have a rational as well as factual understanding of why you're being executed. 'In Mr. Panetti's case, his understanding is the state wants to prevent him from preaching the Gospel on death row and saving their souls. And clearly that's not factual or rational.' Prosecutors argue that Panetti's claims are without merit and that defense attorneys have had years to arrange new evaluations. Lucy Wilke, an assistant district attorney in Gillespie County, where Panetti was tried, said that as recently as November 4, Panetti discussed Election Day politics during a prison visit with relatives. 'At the very least, it is clear that Panetti is oriented to time and place, a fact which his lawyers have disputed,' she said in a filing last week to the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals. It has refused to stop the execution and Panetti's case now is back before a federal appeals court. Court-appointed medical experts for the state have long said they suspect some of Panetti's bizarre behavior was contrived. Panetti recently declined to be interviewed. He said: 'I respectfully decline, Acts 28.' The Biblical chapter in the Acts of the Apostles includes a reference to St. Paul as a prisoner of the Romans and of Paul successfully teaching the Gospel.
killed his in-laws at their Texas Hill Country home in 1992. But his attorneys want to get him off death row, or, in the very least, get his execution date on December 3, postponed so that parents . His legal team want to determine if he's competent to be put to death. Yet no one Jurors convicted him and sentenced him to death,