Gary Parks (Photo courtesy of Arkansas Department of Corrections)
On Tuesday, we learned one of the highest profile convicted murderers in Mountain Home history has been paroled. In part two of our story Wednesday, we will learn more about Gary Wayne Parks and the murder of his stepfather, Dr. David Millstein, over Father’s Day Weekend in June of 2006.
Millstein, a urologist, was stabbed to death while he slept in his home. Nearly seven years later, his stepson, Gary Wayne Parks, was convicted of capital murder and sentenced to 30 years in prison with 10 years suspended as part of a plea deal. He was eligible for parole this summer, and despite multiple law enforcement officials speaking against his release, the parole board granted his freedom July 29.
Mark Hollingsworth, who is now the chief deputy for the Marion County Sheriff’s Office, spent many years with the Arkansas State Police and was a sergeant and case agent who assisted the Mountain Home Police Department with the investigation. He says it was a case that took a lot of time for everyone, including himself, Nevin Barnes from the Mountain Home Police Department and Prosecuting Attorney Ron Kincade.
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Barnes says investigators used phone records to prove Parks came to Mountain Home late that Friday night to kill Millstein and returned to Little Rock early Saturday morning. He then called Mountain Home Police Sunday asking for a welfare check on his stepfather.
Barnes says Parks had made another trip to Mountain Home the week prior and had stopped at Heber Springs on the way home trying to buy a house boat, telling the prospective seller he was coming into a lot of money in a few weeks.
The former Mountain Home detective says all of their trips to Little Rock paid off with one key witness they found.
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By the time the case had gone to trial, it had been nearly seven years of dealing with a lot of activity trying to keep the case together, so when Prosecutor Kincade asked Barnes his thoughts about the plea deal, he supported it.
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Hollingsworth has high praise for everyone involved in the case.
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Barnes says even though Parks was paroled for the murder of Millstein, he would not be surprised if he winds up back in jail again.
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Barnes says he has been contacted by a producer from the NBC television show Dateline who has shown interest about possibly doing a show about the case.
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