High court won't intervene in case involving man convicted of killing four in robbery

The Nevada Supreme Court has declined to stop a death penalty hearing set to begin Monday for a man convicted of killing four men in an August 1998 home robbery.

Donte Johnson's death penalty hearing will be in front of a three-judge panel instead of the jury, which could not reach a decision on his punishment last month.

Johnson's attorneys sought to delay the Las Vegas penalty hearing, arguing that the Nevada system of using three judges to decide his fate is unconstitutional.

But the four members of the seven-member Supreme Court who considered the petition said Friday there was no reason to intervene in the proceedings at this time.

If Johnson is sentenced to death by the panel of judges, an appeal to the Supreme Court will be automatic.