Helmig is incarcerated at Crossroads Correctional Center in Cameron serving a life sentence without parole following his 1996 conviction for first-degree murder for killing his mother, Norma Dean Helmig.

Ms. Helmig's body was found in the Osage River during the flooding of August 1993.  She had a concrete block attached to her.

In his petition for habeas corpus, Helmig's attorneys from the Midwestern Innocence Project asserted that special prosecutor Kenny Hulshof committed prosecutorial misconduct by manipulating witness testimony.  The petition also pointed to a Cole County decision that found Hulshof used perjured evidence to support the conviction of an innocent man, Joshua Kezer. 

"I remain convinced that Dale Helmig is guilty of murdering his mother, Norma Helmig. The unanimous verdict 12 jurors reached a dozen years ago was fairly considered, based on the facts of the case, and correct," said Hulshof.  "Regarding today's procedural decision, I applaud any ruling that moves this matter toward finality and closure."

Helmig had also asked the Missouri Supreme Court to order DNA testing of trace samples of blood and hair found on Ms. Helmig's bedding in 1993.  At the time of Helmig's 1996 conviction, DNA testing was incapable of determining the source of that evidence.  Missouri State Highway Patrol DNA criminologist Brian Hoey says advances in DNA technology makes such testing possible.

Although the Missouri Supreme Court denied Helmig's petitions, its ruling permits Helmig to pursue these claims in Missouri's lower courts.

Helmig's case was the subject of a May 30, 2009 broadcast of "America's Most Wanted."