David Zink Appeals Execution: Raped Woman, 19, Then Tied Her To Cemetery Tree, Cut Spinal Cord

A convicted killer, David Zink, laughed as he described snapping the neck of his 19-year-old victim, but it doesn’t seem like he is laughing now.

The murderer is seeking an 11th-hour appeal from the US Supreme Court. Zink was convicted of murdering Amanda Morton, 19, after he crashed into her vehicle in St. Louis. The man, who had just been released from a 20-year prison sentence for raping and abducting another girl, was scared the accident would be seen as a violation of parole. Therefore, he decided to do away with Morton instead of facing jail time for the collision. Zink took Morton to a hotel room where he raped her before tying her to a tree in a cemetery. After binding her to the tree he snapped her neck and sliced her spinal cord. Now the murderer is hoping for the US Supreme Court to spare him execution.

According to the Daily Mail, David Zink was arrested in 2001 for the horrific murder of 19-year-old Amanda Morton. The case was solid with Zink even laughing as police interviewed him about the teen’s death. Police noted that Zink laughed as he told police how he tied Morton to a tree, told her to look up, then snapped her neck and sliced her spinal cord with a knife.

According to the police report, David Zink was scared that the crash would send him back to jail as it would be seen as a violation of parole as he had been drinking. Zink had just served 20 years behind bars for the rape and abduction of another woman. Therefore, instead of risking going back to jail, the killer decided to get rid of Morton. Zink laughed in his interview with police as he described the horrifying details of the murder and noted that he saw Morton as a “threat” to his freedom.

“If I think that you’re going to pose a threat to my freedom, it is set in my mind I want to eliminate you.”

Though he was laughing during his interrogation, it seems that there is nothing funny about the thought of his own death. David Zink’s lawyers have appealed the killer’s execution which is supposed to take place tonight at 6pm. The Missouri Supreme Court has already denied the appeal which will now move forward to the US Supreme Court.

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