Judge blocks Robert Roberson’s execution in controversial shaken baby case

A judge in Texas has blocked the execution of the first man sentenced to death in the US for murder related to “shaken baby syndrome”, less than two hours before the death penalty was due to be carried out. onion.

Robert Roberson, 57, was sentenced to death in 2003 for the death of his two-year-old daughter Nikki Curtis, after an autopsy concluded she died from injuries sustained from abuse.

Roberson and his attorneys have long maintained that the child died of complications from pneumonia.

US media reported that after suspending his execution, Roberson expressed shock and thanked his supporters.

The prisoner is scheduled to be executed at 18:00 local time (23:00 GMT) on Thursday.

But just 90 minutes earlier, a Travis County judge issued a temporary restraining order to stop the case from moving forward, so that Roberson could testify in a hearing at the state legislature next week.

The decision came after a Texas House committee issued a highly unusual subpoena to Roberson late Wednesday, in hopes that authorities would send him to appear at the hearing. ceiling on October 21.

A bipartisan group of 86 Texas lawmakers, dozens of medical and scientific experts, lawyers and others – including best-selling author John Grisham and other Republicans support the death penalty photo – all called for a pardon for Roberson.

The group argued that the conviction was based on outdated science, before authorities had a proper understanding of “shaken baby syndrome”.

“In Robert’s case there was no crime, but we were about to kill someone for it in Texas,” Grisham told reporters in September.

Roberson’s lawyers also argued that his autism – which was undiagnosed at the time of Nikki’s death – was used against him after police and medical staff became suspicious of the lack of emotion he displays.

Autism can affect how a person communicates with others.

In a statement reported by CBS News, the BBC’s US partner, Roberson gave his reaction to the judge’s intervention, praising God and thanking his supporters.

“He was shocked, to say the least,” Texas Department of Criminal Justice spokeswoman Amanda Hernandez told The Associated Press.

Shortly after a Travis County judge issued a last-minute reprieve on Thursday, the U.S. Supreme Court declined to intervene to completely overturn the execution.

In a statement about the decision, Supreme Court Justice Sotomayor, a liberal, said it was up to Texas Gov. Greg Abbott whether to stop the execution.

Meanwhile, the Texas attorney general has filed an appeal of the temporary restraining order.

Roberson’s supporters include Brian Wharton, the lead detective investigating the incident in Palestine, Texas.

“I will forever be haunted by my role in helping the state put this innocent man on death row,” Wharton said.

“Robert’s case will forever be a burden on my heart and soul.”

Earlier this week, the Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles denied Roberson’s petition for clemency, voting 6-0 against the motion to postpone the death penalty or commute it to life in prison.

Governor Abbott may also be granted a one-time extension of 30 days. He has done so only once in nearly a decade in office. Roberson recently called on Abbott to “do the right thing” because “I am innocent.”

Roberson is one of two prisoners scheduled to be executed in the US on Thursday. In Alabama, 36-year-old Derrick Dearman was executed after admitting to killing five people with an ax and a gun in 2016.

According to Roberson, his daughter fell out of bed on January 31, 2002.

Hours later, he said he realized she was no longer breathing and took her to the emergency room, where she was pronounced dead.

Court records show medical staff immediately suspected she had been abused because of bruises on her head, swelling on her brain and bleeding behind her eyes.

He was arrested and charged with murder the next day. An autopsy determined she died from blunt force head trauma and her death was ruled a homicide.

Roberson’s attorneys noted that Nikki was prescribed medications that are no longer used in children because they can cause serious complications.

They argued that the drugs and her fall may have ultimately killed her.

“Shaken baby syndrome” – now known as abusive head trauma – is often diagnosed after finding evidence of retinal hemorrhages, brain swelling and bleeding in the brain.

Although the diagnosis is widely accepted by the medical community, a recent report emphasizes the need to thoroughly test for other causes before concluding the injury is due to abuse.

In 2023, the appeals court agreed that there was not enough evidence to overturn Roberson’s conviction. The Supreme Court refused to hear his case.