It’s rare for governors to step in to halt executions. In the case of Robert Roberson, it ended up being state lawmakers who took extraordinary steps.
death penalty
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Robert Roberson
Texas Supreme Court temporarily stops Robert Roberson’s execution
The state’s highest civil court said it wants a lower court to resolve a separation-of-powers issue raised by a group of Texas lawmakers who subpoenaed the death row inmate the night before he was set to be put to death.
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Robert Roberson
What is shaken baby syndrome, the controversial diagnosis for which Robert Roberson is set to die?
The American Academy of Pediatrics embraces the diagnosis, but courts have thrown out some cases, calling it “junk science.”
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Robert Roberson
With little say over Robert Roberson’s fate, Texas lawmakers take extraordinary steps to buy him more time
With Roberson’s options dwindling, a House panel used its bully pulpit to prove his case and excoriate the failures of the state’s junk science law.
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Robert Roberson
Robert Roberson’s final efforts to stop Texas execution dwindle as support for clemency grows
Few options to avoid death remain for the Palestine man, who is set to be executed Thursday on the basis of a shaken baby syndrome diagnosis.
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Criminal Justice
Supreme Court to review death penalty appeal challenging Texas’s DNA testing law
Ruben Gutierrez was sentenced to death for the 1998 Brownsville murder of an elderly woman. His execution was stayed in July.
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Criminal Justice
Texas executes Harris County man tied to five killings
Garcia White, who killed twin sisters, became the fifth Texas inmate put to death in 2024 after the U.S. Supreme Court declined to issue a stay of execution.
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Criminal Justice
Texas executes Brazoria County man for stomping death of infant son
Travis James Mullis was sentenced to death in 2011 for killing his 3-month-old son in Galveston. He was the fourth person executed in Texas this year.
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Robert Roberson
Bipartisan Texas House majority urges clemency for man facing execution in shaken baby case
Lawmakers cite new scientific evidence that they say proves Robert Roberson, who is set for execution on Oct. 17, did not kill his daughter.
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Robert Roberson
Texas’ highest criminal court declines to stop execution of man accused in shaken baby case
Lawyers for Robert Roberson say the science used to sentence him to death is questionable and that prior health issues could explain the death of his 2-year-old daughter in 2002.
