Texas man whose execution was halted will not testify in person before lawmakers

AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — A Texas man whose execution was halted after lawmakers ordered Robert Roberson to appear at the state Capitol failed to appear as scheduled Monday following a dispute over a person’s promotion to the state Capitol Death row had come with the extraordinary purpose of testifying in a public hearing.

His absence from a highly anticipated hearing at the Texas Capitol was another twist last desperate attempts to save Roberson’s life against claims that outdated science and flawed evidence led to his conviction in 2003 in the death of his two-year-old daughter.

It also sparked tensions between a group of Republican and Democratic lawmakers who say Roberson is innocent and top Republican state leaders, including Republican Gov. Greg Abbott, who say the lawmakers’ unusual last-minute maneuver to subpoena Roberson was an attempt , to gain more time a limit has been exceeded.

Roberson was scheduled to become the first person in the United States to be executed last Thursday for a murder conviction related to the diagnosis Shaken baby syndrome. He was taken to America’s busiest death chamber and waited in a holding cell when the Texas Supreme Court abruptly halted plans to give him a lethal injection.

Democratic Rep. Joe Moody, the chairman of a House committee that led the effort to stop the execution, said at the start of Monday’s hearing that Roberson was unlikely to appear but that lawmakers still hoped he would do so soon.

“If this committee wanted to be persistent, there would be dramatic opportunities to enforce this subpoena,” Moody said. “But we did not issue the subpoena to create a constitutional crisis, and we are not interested in creating a divide between the branches of government.”

The Texas attorney general’s office had told lawmakers that Roberson would only appear via video conference, which Moody said was “ill-suited” for Roberson because he is autistic.

“That doesn’t mean Robert won’t testify at all,” Moody said, without saying when Roberson might testify or how.

Among those who testified Monday about Roberson’s case was daytime television psychologist “Dr. Phil” McGraw and bestselling author John Grisham. Veteran talk show host McGraw fully supported Roberson, stating that there was not enough evidence to convict him of a crime.

“If you execute people even though you now know better, you must abolish the death penalty. If that is the standard by which you execute people, then you have a bad system,” McGraw said.

Roberson’s claims of innocence are supported by a group of Republican and Democratic lawmakers who say he was convicted based on outdated scientific evidence.

Roberson received the death penalty for the 2002 death of his daughter Nikki Curtis in the East Texas city of Palestine. Prosecutors argued that the infant’s death was caused by severe head trauma from violent shaking. Roberson’s lawyers say the bruises on Curtis’ body were likely the result of complications from severe pneumonia and not child abuse.

Once Roberson testifies before lawmakers, prosecutors could request a new execution date at any time, said Gretchen Sween, one of his lawyers.

Lawmakers had sought to have Roberson transported from death row to appear in person, raising the possibility of an extraordinary scene at the Texas Capitol. However, the Attorney General’s Office told the committee that he would appear virtually.

Abbott’s office said the Texas Supreme Court should reject the subpoena, writing that the House committee had “stepped out of line” in its first public statement on the case.

Nearly 90 bipartisan lawmakers, medical experts and civil rights activists had called on Abbott to stay his execution. Abbott has not commented on Roberson’s case or the Texas Parole Board Requests for clemency were rejected.

After being rebuffed by the courts and the Texas Parole Board in their efforts to save Roberson’s life, lawmakers last Thursday called Roberson to testify. The members of the House of Representatives committee have commented Frustration with Texas’ Junk Science Lawwhich they say did not work as intended, including in the Roberson case.

The 2013 law allows a person convicted of a crime to claim compensation if the evidence used against them is no longer credible. At the time, it was hailed by lawmakers as a uniquely future-proof solution to wrongful convictions based on flawed scientific evidence. But Roberson’s supporters say his case highlights flaws in the justice system, where the law has been weakened by deliberate misinterpretations by the state’s highest criminal court.

In the last 10 years, 74 applications have been filed and decided under the Junk Science Act. A third of the applications were filed by people facing the death penalty. All were unsuccessful.

Anderson County District Attorney Allyson Mitchell, whose office prosecuted Roberson, previously told the committee that a trial took place in 2022 where Roberson’s lawyers presented their new evidence to a judge, who dismissed their claims.

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Lathan is a corps member for the Associated Press/Report for America Statehouse News Initiative. Report for America is a nonprofit national service program that places journalists in local newsrooms to report on undercovered issues.