Another obstacle for Robert Roberson, a death row convict… Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton argues that he shouldn’t be allowed to speak before Congress for the following reasons.
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A motion filed by Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton may prevent
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Lawmakers want to hear testimony from Roberson on Texas’ “junk science” law.
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Roberson was convicted of murdering his daughter after medical professionals say she experienced “shaken baby syndrome.”
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Roberson would be the first person in the US executed for a murder conviction tied to the diagnosis of shaken baby syndrome.
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A motion filed by Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton may prevent
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Lawmakers want to hear testimony from Roberson on Texas’ “junk science” law.
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Roberson was convicted of murdering his daughter after medical professionals say she experienced “shaken baby syndrome.”
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Roberson would be the first person in the US executed for a murder conviction tied to the diagnosis of shaken baby syndrome.
AustinOn Friday, Texas lawmakers who halted Robert Roberson’s execution hoped to hear his testimony. Now, that doesn’t seem likely.
Roberson is scheduled to be put to death after being found guilty in 2002 of the murder of his 2-year-old daughter.
Roberson’s diagnosis of “shaken baby syndrome,” which has subsequently been questioned, was a major component of the case against him.
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton (right) and Robert Roberson (left)
What we know Roberson was subpoenaed by the Texas House Committee on Criminal Jurisprudence to attend a hearing at the Texas Capitol on Friday, December 20 at noon.
The leaders of the committee, Rep. Jeff Leach (R-Plano) and Rep. Joe Moody (D-El Paso), expressed hope that Roberson’s testimony would clarify the state’s “junk science” statute, which Roberson’s lawyers think might be used to reverse his conviction.
On Thursday evening, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton took over.
In attempt to stop Robert Roberson from testifying at the State Capitol, Paxton’s office filed an application for a protective order.
The House subpoena to testify, according to the AG’s Office, is “incorrect,” and it was issued against the state Constitution.
The Texas Department of Criminal Justice is exempt from fulfilling the subpoena until the motion is heard and resolved, according to the attorney general’s office.
“In addition to presenting serious security risks, the subpoena is procedurally defective and therefore invalid as it was issued in violation of the House Rules, the Texas Constitution, and other applicable laws,” the office of the attorney general stated.
According to a prior Texas Supreme Court decision in the case, a House committee could force a witness to testify if doing so did not conflict with an execution date.
Due to his upcoming trip abroad, Paxton asked in his application that the court hearing not be scheduled before January 13, 2025.
On January 14, 2025, the start of Texas’ next legislative session results in the dissolution of the Texas House Committee on Criminal Jurisprudence.
What we don’t know: Since October, there have been numerous legal tangles, even if Roberson’s appearance seems doubtful.
What comes next is still very much up in the air.
Roberson’s execution date has not yet been scheduled.
What they’re saying:In a statement, Roberson’s lawyer Gretchen Sween said that Paxton’s office “interfered with the Committee’s lawful right to obtain his appearance and take his testimony.”
Sween claims that the logistics for moving Roberson have already been planned and refers to Paxton’s office’s efforts as “cheap fear mongering.”
“The true ‘fear’ that appears to be at work here is that hearing from Robert and seeing him will demonstrate to the world that an innocent guy with a severe disability is sitting on death row. In a statement, Sween said, “Texans deserve better.”
What comes next: The hearing is set to start at 12 p.m. on Friday, whether Roberson is there or not.
On this page, you can watch a live feed of the hearing.
Robert Roberson Murder Conviction
The Backstory: In 2002, Robertson, then 58, was found guilty of the murder of his 2-year-old daughter in Palestine, Texas.
He brought her to the ER because she had a high fever, and the doctors there concluded that she had shaken infant syndrome.
That diagnosis has been contested by Roberson’s lawyers, who have referred to it as “junk science.”
According to them, Nikki passed away naturally, most likely from unidentified pneumonia.
Robert Roberson’s Delayed Execution
Following the Texas Supreme Court’s last-minute decision to temporarily postpone Robert Roberson’s execution on Thursday night, lawmakers spoke. Roberson would be the first victim of shaken infant syndrome to be put to death.
The chief investigator in the case and a group of senators have contended that the science underlying Roberson’s death sentence is flawed.
The day before Roberson’s scheduled execution on October 17, the Texas House Committee on Criminal Jurisprudence subpoenaed the death row inmate to testify at a hearing regarding his case. In order to consider the committee’s request, the Supreme Court postponed the execution that evening.
Subsequently, the Supreme Court decided that a subpoena could force a witness to testify if there was no imminent execution, but it could not stop a future execution.
Lawmakers have come under fire from some of the 2-year-old’s family members for postponing Roberson’s execution.
Texas’ Junk Science Law
For further information, see Texas’ 2013 “junk science” bill.
If the evidence used against a person is no longer reliable, the law permits that person to seek redress.
In 2013, Texas passed the first junk science statute. Legal experts referred to it as a national model for states.
Similar “junk science” laws exist in California, Connecticut, Michigan, Nevada, and Wyoming; however, their effectiveness in reversing death penalty cases has not been investigated.
The law as it was passed in 2013 is available here:
By the numbers: According to a report by the civil rights organization Texas Defender Service, since the junk science statute was passed in 2013, no one who was facing death has had their sentence revoked.
Under the junk science statute, 74 applications have been submitted and decided upon in the past ten years. Those facing the death penalty filed one-third of the applications. They were all failures.
Although they accounted for fewer than half of all applications, approximately three-quarters of those that resulted in relief were for convictions including DNA evidence.
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The Texas Supreme Court, the Texas Code of Criminal Procedure, the House Committee on Criminal Jurisprudence, a motion filed by Attorney General Ken Paxton, previous FOX coverage of the case, and the Associated Press are the sources of the information in this article.
The Texas Supreme Court, the Texas Code of Criminal Procedure, the House Committee on Criminal Jurisprudence, a motion filed by Attorney General Ken Paxton, previous FOX coverage of the case, and the Associated Press are the sources of the information in this article.
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