The Texas Supreme Court said it may proceed with the execution of Robert Roberson, a Texas man convicted of killing his 2-year-old daughter.
He was scheduled to be the first person to be executed in the United States for a murder related to “shaken baby syndrome,” but the execution was suspended at the last minute after some public backlash led to a legal challenge. Suspended.
The Texas Supreme Court’s decision means a state court judge will set a new execution date.
Roberson has long maintained his innocence. His lawyers said new evidence shows the child died of complications from pneumonia.
Hours before Mr. Roberson, 57, was to be executed on October 17, a bipartisan group of members of the Texas House of Representatives issued a subpoena to Mr. Roberson to testify at a hearing to be held after the day of his execution.
A Travis County judge then issued a temporary restraining order halting any future executions before a hearing could take place.
But on Friday, weeks after the subpoena was issued, the Texas Supreme Court ruled that lawmakers did not have the authority to overturn Mr. Roberson’s scheduled execution under the subpoena, and that the execution would proceed in the future. said that it should be done.
Lawmakers made a last-ditch attempt after Roberson appealed for clemency last month. He also lost multiple appeals in state court.
The Texas Parole Board rejected Mr. Roberson’s bid for clemency, and Texas Governor Greg Abbott also refused to suspend Mr. Roberson’s execution.
In their subpoena, Texas lawmakers said they plan to address questions surrounding Roberson’s case and new scientific developments that could affect his conviction.
Scientific experts and TV host Phil McGraw, known as Dr. Phil, spoke at the hearing, but Roberson did not.
The state attorney general declined to allow Roberson to appear in person at the hearing for security reasons.
Congress also rejected Mr. Roberson’s virtual appearance on the grounds that he is autistic and is not familiar with modern technology after spending more than 20 years in prison.
Among the topics discussed during the hearing was Texas’ junk science law, which allows prisoners to challenge their convictions based on science that has since become unreliable.
McGraw was among those who said the law could have affected Roberson’s case.
Roberson was originally sentenced to death in 2003 for the death of his daughter Nikki Curtis.
An autopsy determined that her daughter died from injuries sustained from the abuse, but Roberson said her daughter fell from the bed and was not breathing when she returned several hours later.
He took her to the emergency room, where she was pronounced dead.
Medical staff immediately suspected abuse, but Roberson’s attorney said her daughter had been prescribed medication that is not currently given to children because it can cause serious complications, and that her daughter had been prescribed medication that could cause serious complications and that she had not been diagnosed with a fall. It was claimed that this was the cause of death.
In 2023, the Court of Appeals agreed that there was insufficient evidence to overturn Roberson’s conviction. The Supreme Court refused to hear his case.
“Shaken baby syndrome” (now called abusive head trauma) is usually diagnosed after there is evidence of retinal hemorrhage, brain swelling, or bleeding within the brain.
Although this diagnosis is widely accepted by the medical community, recent reports highlight the need to thoroughly investigate other causes before concluding that injuries are due to abuse.
