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The next dramatic moment in the last-ditch effort to spare Texas death row inmate Robert Roberson will play out Monday in the Texas Capitol, as Roberson is expected to speak to a House committee at noon in response to the subpoena that at least temporarily saved his life.
[A legal battle spared Robert Roberson’s life, for now. Here’s what happens next.]
The Texas Supreme Court halted Roberson’s execution late Thursday — the first time in Texas history, experts believed, that one high court blocked an execution that was already approved by the other. The Texas Court of Criminal Appeals repeatedly declined to stop Roberson’s execution, clearing the way for it to move forward earlier that same day.
The Texas Supreme Court’s order came as a result of a House Criminal Jurisprudence Committee subpoena ordering Roberson to testify at a hearing set for four days after his execution date. The lawmakers, who warned the state was about to kill a likely innocent man, got their way — at least for now.
Roberson was convicted in 2003 in the death of his chronically ill 2-year-old daughter, Nikki, who was given a shaken baby syndrome diagnosis that many experts and lawmakers say is no longer supported by the scientific evidence. Roberson has maintained his innocence over two decades on death row, while prosecutors say evidence of abuse is still convincing.
Roberson is still sentenced to die. The prosecutor in Roberson’s case must request a new execution date, which cannot be within 90 days of the date of the request itself.
The agenda for the meeting calls for a discussion about "criminal procedure related to capital punishment" and a 2013 law designed to allow prisoners to challenge their sentences if they are convicted based on "junk science."
The live feed for the hearing has not yet begun. Bookmark this page to watch starting around noon.