HOUSTON – Lawmakers on the Texas House Committee on Criminal Jurisprudence still want to hear from death row inmate, Robert Roberson. The committee’s chair plans to issue another subpoena for Roberson’s testimony.
“Our House committee has every right to summon Mr. Roberson, or any other inmate for that matter, to come and testify before that committee. And so that’s what I intend to do,” said State Rep. Joe Moody, (D) Dist. 78.
The committee subpoenaed Roberson the night before his scheduled execution in October. The subpoena wound up stopping the execution.
The Texas State Supreme Court has since ruled a subpoena from lawmakers will not be allowed to interfere with a scheduled execution in the future. However, the high court also ruled lawmakers have the right to subpoena testimony while investigating what laws need to be changed or passed, and it’s up the executive branch of our government to help facilitate compliance with a subpoena when it involves a prisoner.
“I have attempted to reach out to the office of Attorney General after the court ruling to come up with an agreed upon time and place to produce Mr. Roberson for testimony. This is something that lawyers do across the state of Texas every single day, but apparently they’re not capable of doing very simple work,” Moody said.
“Are they saying ‘we’ll get back to you,’ or are they just not responding?” KPRC 2 investigates Robert Arnold asked.
“I’ve been around lawyers long enough to know when they’re dragging their feet and they’re dragging their feet,” Moody said.
The AG’s office has not yet responded to KPRC 2’s request for a comment. The committee has until Jan. 14, when the new legislative session begins, to obtain Roberson’s testimony.
Moody said the committee worked out a plan to have Roberson testify in person, but were then told by the AG’s office they could only obtain his testimony remotely. Committee members has said Roberson is on the autism spectrum and has communication difficulties, therefore questioning him in person is needed to ensure all questions and answers are properly understood.
Roberson’s case became a flashpoint of controversy as committee members were investigating why the state’s so-called ‘junk science’ law was not working as intended. Roberson was convicted in 2003 of killing his 2-year old daughter.
“It’s been on the books for ten years now, yet has not been granting, has not been essentially the impetus for the relief that we thought it would be when it was passed over a decade ago,” Moody said.
The law is designed to help those convicted of crimes win a retrial if they can show new or evolved scientific methods likely would have impacted their original conviction or punishment. Members of the committee have said they believe Texas' Court of Criminal Appeals has placed a higher burden on these cases than the law intended.
Committee members said they believe the CCA, Texas' highest criminal court, has essentially been deciding appeals filed under this law on whether new or evolved science can prove a person is actually innocent.
Moody has already filed a bill to address this issue.
Numerous lawmakers have called for Roberson to get a new trial based on information that came to light after his conviction and death sentence. Primarily, committee members have said Roberson’s conviction was based on a diagnosis of “shaken baby syndrome.” The science used to make that diagnosis at the time of Roberson’s trial has since been debunked and lawmakers questioned why the ‘junk science’ law didn’t help him secure a new trial.
“If we’re going to allow the government to utilize the biggest power it has, which is to take someone’s life, we better be damn sure that we got it right,” Moody said. “Can we just make sure we got it right? Because there’s an enormous amount of questions here.”
Officials with the AG’s Office, Gov. Greg Abbott and Anderson County prosecutors stand by Roberson’s conviction and death sentence, stating there was far more to the case then “shaken baby syndrome.”
The Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles also unanimously denied Roberson clemency.
Since the Texas Supreme Court’s ruling, the Anderson County District Attorney has been free to seek a new execution date, but has not yet done so.
