Over six hours on the day Robert Roberson was set to be put to death, Texas House lawmakers waged a rollercoaster legal battle to delay his execution, setting off a separation-of-powers conflict that would have to be resolved before the state could resume its execution plan.
The Texas Supreme Court halted Roberson性视界传媒檚 execution late Thursday 性视界传媒 the first time in state 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性视界传媒檚 execution, clearing the way for it to move forward earlier that same day.
The Texas Supreme Court性视界传媒檚 order came as a result of a Hail Mary subpoena a Texas House committee issued to Roberson in a frenzied bid to save his life. The lawmakers, who warned the state was about to kill a likely innocent man, got their way 性视界传媒 at least for now.
Roberson was convicted in 2003 in the death of his chronically ill 2-year-old daughter Nikki in Palestine. The child 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. He is expected to testify before the Texas House panel that subpoenaed him on Monday.
Here性视界传媒檚 what you need to know.
The subpoena
The Texas House Committee on Criminal Jurisprudence voted unanimously on Wednesday to subpoena Roberson, directing him to testify before the panel at an Oct. 21 hearing 性视界传媒 four days after his scheduled execution.
On Thursday, hours before Roberson was set to die, state lawmakers asked the court for a stay of execution to allow him to respond to the subpoena.
They argued that only Roberson could provide unique testimony relevant to the committee性视界传媒檚 work on criminal justice matters, and in particular, the state性视界传媒檚 pioneering 2013 junk science law 性视界传媒 which Roberson had tried, and failed, to use to prove his innocence.
性视界传媒淗is testimony on his access to justice and due process are unique because he is a person with autism in a case unlike any other in the State of Texas 性视界传媒 the first potential 性视界传媒榮haken baby syndrome性视界传媒 execution,性视界传媒 state Reps. Joe Moody, D-El Paso, and Jeff Leach, R-Plano, wrote to the Texas Supreme Court. 性视界传媒淣o other person can provide the Committee with this information. Given the dispute over some of the facts surrounding his case, it is also essential for the Committee to hear from him personally to judge his credibility as a witness.性视界传媒
All of Roberson性视界传媒檚 appeals have been rejected by the courts so far, raising concerns among lawmakers that the courts were failing to properly implement the state性视界传媒檚 junk science law. That law was created to allow the courts to overturn a conviction if the science at the center of the case had since changed or been discredited.
Roberson is expected to appear in person for testimony before the Texas House criminal jurisprudence panel on Monday, in response to the committee性视界传媒檚 subpoena.
The Texas Supreme Court性视界传媒檚 order
The Texas House committee性视界传媒檚 subpoena triggered a separation of powers issue that the Texas Supreme Court ordered a lower court 性视界传媒 the Travis County District Court 性视界传媒 to resolve before Roberson性视界传媒檚 execution date could be reset.
The legislative subpoena of a condemned man 性视界传媒 a novel legal maneuver 性视界传媒 created conflicting legal obligations for the Texas Department of Criminal Justice, an executive branch agency: either execute Roberson on Oct. 17 as scheduled, or produce him for testimony on Oct. 21.
That bind raised the constitutional question of which branch性视界传媒檚 authority 性视界传媒 the legislative or the executive 性视界传媒 reigned in a scenario of competing legal directives.
性视界传媒淲hether the legislature may use its authority to compel the attendance of witnesses to block the executive branch性视界传媒檚 authority to enforce a sentence of death is a question of Texas civil law, not its criminal law,性视界传媒 Texas Supreme Court Justice Evan Young wrote in a concurring opinion Thursday. 性视界传媒淭he question implicates the distribution of authority among the three branches of government, pitting two branches against each other. ... These questions implicate the separation of powers at a high level.性视界传媒
The legal maneuvering began when House lawmakers got a Travis County judge to issue a temporary restraining order blocking Roberson性视界传媒檚 execution. In turn, the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals vacated the order on Attorney General Ken Paxton性视界传媒檚 request, which prompted state lawmakers to ask the state supreme court to intervene, and the execution was blocked again.
The restraining order is valid through Oct. 31, when the Travis County district court judge will hold a hearing on Texas lawmakers性视界传媒 application for an injunction pending a full trial on the merits of the separation-of-powers issue.
Where does this all leave Roberson?
It remains to be seen how long it might take the court to resolve the separation-of-powers conflict, meaning it性视界传媒檚 unclear how long Roberson性视界传媒檚 execution could be delayed.
The prosecutor in Roberson性视界传媒檚 case must also request a new execution date, which cannot be within 90 days of when the state requests a new date.
Gov. Greg Abbott could also grant a one-time, 30 day reprieve. He has so far remained publicly silent on the case.
And as remarkable as the Texas Supreme Court性视界传媒檚 stay was, Roberson is still sentenced to death. And the high court was clear in its order that the outstanding discussion should focus tightly on the separation-of-powers question 性视界传媒 without delving at all into Roberson性视界传媒檚 case.
性视界传媒淭his Court has no authority over criminal sentences, but the Court of Criminal Appeals does, and that court has repeatedly considered this case,性视界传媒 Young wrote in his concurring opinion. 性视界传媒淎nything other than laser-like focus on the specific civil-law questions presented 性视界传媒 and especially the competing authority of the legislative and executive branches in this situation 性视界传媒 is therefore off limits.性视界传媒
It性视界传媒檚 unclear what remaining legal recourse Roberson has. The U.S. Supreme Court, the state性视界传媒檚 highest criminal court and his trial court have all declined to vacate his execution and grant him a new trial over several rounds of appeals. The state性视界传媒檚 parole board voted unanimously on Oct. 16 to recommend against granting clemency.
But there are situational factors that could change over the course of Roberson性视界传媒檚 stay, with ramifications for his case.
Three of the five judges on the Court of Criminal Appeals who voted to allow Roberson性视界传媒檚 execution to proceed are set to leave the bench at the end of the year after Paxton-backed primary challengers unseated them. If even one of the incoming judges elected in November takes a different view of his case, it could shift the landscape in Roberson性视界传媒檚 favor. But a conservative sweep on a court that has already repeatedly rejected Roberson性视界传媒檚 appeals could diminish his already long-shot chances.
The Legislature will also come into session in January. Members of the Texas House, at least, have indicated they could consider amendments to the 2013 junk science law, with potential consequences for Roberson性视界传媒檚 appeals. Whether any amendments could become law, on the other hand, is unclear, as is whether Roberson性视界传媒檚 stay might extend long enough to see statutory change.
