Texas death row inmate Robert Roberson is still holding out for another miracle after his life was temporarily spared from his scheduled execution last week. However, in a surprise announcement by lawmakers claimed during a Committee on Criminal Jurisprudence Monday, that he would not be testifying before lawmakers.
MORE: Texas was about to execute Robert Roberson. Then a last-ditch tactic bought him more time
Rep. Joe Moody said during the hearing Monday shortly after 12:30 p.m. that the committee would not agree to a remote testimony, due to Roberson’s autism. At last check, they would be speaking with Attorney General Ken Paxton’s office to see what can be done.
His initial testimony was expected after a bipartisan group of lawmakers subpoenaed Roberson for a hearing that would happen days after his scheduled execution, a Travis County judge initially halted the lethal injection 90 minutes by granting a temporary restraining order.
The move has been described as unprecedented, wild, and creative -- but legal.
“This is one of the wildest processes I’ve ever seen,” UH Criminal Law Professor Sandra Guerra Thompson said. “I’m not sure I’ll ever see anything like it again. It’s pretty unheard of to have a legislative body step in this way and issue a subpoena as an effort to stop an execution.”
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When Roberson’s execution was abruptly halted, it was due to a subpoena ordering him to testify over a legal backstop that both Republicans and Democrats say should have saved him long ago: Texas’ junk science law.
Back in 2013 and then again in 2015, this so-called junk science law was bolstered, and what the law essentially states is if you have a conviction that’s based either whole or in part on science, that is later determined to be either outdated, bad or wrong, you can appeal your conviction even if you’ve exhausted all your other appeal.
So lawmakers are looking at this case to find out why that law was not triggered. And the reason for that is Roberson has been saying that the science that was used to determine his daughter died from shaken baby syndrome is based on outdated bad science, that there’s new science now that shows the science used at the time his daughter was killed was wrong thinking and inaccurate and could not be dependable.
The constitutional question of whether a subpoena from a legislative body can stay an execution is still debated, but in this case has worked in the interim.
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Now, Roberson will testify in person before the Texas House Criminal Jurisprudence Committee on Monday.
He will be one of several people called to testify. Roberson will be taken to and from the State Capitol by the Texas Department of Criminal Justice.
