Judge stops execution in Texas 90 minutes before completion

Despite evidence of his innocence, Robert Roberson was scheduled to be executed in Texas. Now his execution was stopped shortly before it was completed.

The planned execution of Robert Leslie Roberson in Texas was stopped at short notice. A judge granted a request for a temporary restraining order made just 90 minutes before the scheduled execution by lethal injection. The request came from a committee in the Texas House of Representatives.

A spokeswoman for the Texas Department of Criminal Justice announced that the state has appealed the decision and confirmed that the execution will not proceed until the injunction is resolved in court. Since the execution order only applies to October 17th, a judge will have to set a new execution date. The halt to the execution was preceded by an unprecedented series of legal maneuvers in which the state and Roberson’s lawyers fought over his fate.

Roberson was accused of shaking his 2-year-old daughter Nikki to death. He has been on death row since 2003. Roberson denies the allegations. In fact, Nikki also suffered from pneumonia, undetected sepsis, and was given medication that is now banned for children.

The lead investigator at the time, Brian Wharton, also admitted that he made mistakes in the investigation, as USA Today reports. Today, Wharton is a pastor and is publicly calling for a re-examination of the case. “I was wrong. “Robert is a good man and did not start the crime,” Wharton told USA Today’s “The Excerpt” podcast.

Wharton went on to say that misunderstandings and mistakes led Mann to see Roberson as the perpetrator. When Roberson took his daughter Nikki to the hospital, doctors and investigators interpreted his perceived callousness as a sign of suspicion – behavior that could also be attributed to autism. Roberson is diagnosed with autism. Additionally, Nikki’s other medical issues were ignored.

In addition to the MPs, 34 scientific and medical experts wrote a letter. They emphasized that Nikki’s symptoms would no longer be seen as signs of so-called “shake-trauma syndrome.” Parental rights advocates, autism advocates and anti-death penalty groups such as the Innocence Project are also calling for the verdict to be overturned.

The latest ruling has already sparked reactions on social media, including from Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump, who harshly criticized the judge’s decision: “Another weak judge who withheld justice. How many more chances does this guy get? What about the “justice for the baby?”

Roberson would have been the first person in the U.S. to be executed because of shaken baby syndrome, a diagnosis that many scientists now question. He would also be the sixth inmate in Texas to be killed as punishment this year and the 20th overall in the U.S. this year. Now he can continue living for now.