The Texas Supreme Court granted a reprieve in the execution of Robert Roberson who was convicted in 2003 of murder of his 2-year-old daughter.
Lawmakers are urging them to allow the case to be re-examined based on some new evidence that questions his guilt.
In a dramatic last-minute reversal, the Texas Supreme Court voted to halt the execution of convicted killer Robert Roberson, who murdered his 2-year-old daughter Nikki Curtis in 2002.
The reason: the state had convicted him of a disorder that was once diagnosed as shaken baby syndrome but now falls under a reclassification.
His attorneys claim scientific evidence given to the defense in the past leaves doubt as to how his daughter died.
Scheduled to die by lethal injection Thursday evening, Roberson has been insisting for more than two decades that he is innocent of the crime for which he was convicted — the June 1991 murder of Robert Baruffi, 20.
But as midnight approached Thursday, the state’s highest court intervened, putting the execution on hold until lawmakers can take a second look at the case in a special legislative session scheduled to begin Friday.
Members of the House, particularly Representatives Joe Moody and Jeff Leach, have been very vocal in pushing for delaying this execution since they say Roberson’s case in 2003 didn’t have crucial scientific evidence.
Leach called this a shame, saying an innocent man might be executed; that “this case deserves another look.”
When clemency was denied by the Texas Board of Paroles and Pardons earlier in the week, news of a possible stay of execution was giving Roberson a last-minute chance to present his case to the capitol of Texas, and many are hoping that the truth will finally come out.;
Supporters, including the Innocence Project, believe that such a stay could be that first step towards exoneration.
