Robert Roberson spared execution at the last minute by Texas Supreme Court

globalnews.ca:

Robert Roberson‘s capital punishment sentence was based on junk science and a misdiagnosis of “shaken baby syndrome,” the Texas Supreme Court on Thursday night blocked his execution.The move to halt Roberson’s execution is temporary, but came less than two hours before the 57-year-old death row inmate was scheduled to die by lethal injection.According to the Washington Post, Roberson could have been the first American to receive the death penalty for a conviction related to shaken baby syndrome, a brain injury caused by forcefully shaking an infant or toddler. The condition can cause permanent brain damage or death.Roberson was put on death row when he was convicted of murdering his two-year-old daughter after he brought her to a hospital in Palestine, Texas, in 2002.

He told doctors his daughter, Nikki Curtis, had a fever and fell out of bed after a week of being seriously ill. The little girl, who doctors told the court was “blue” in complexion, was later pronounced dead at another hospital.Doctors suspected Curtis had been abused and diagnosed the girl with shaken baby syndrome.Roberson was sentenced to death for capital murder in 2003.Since then, Roberson’s lawyers and bipartisan supporters have tried to stop his execution.

Advocates have long argued Curtis died of complications from pneumonia, which progressed into sepsis.Roberson’s execution was stayed via a temporary restraining order issued by a Travis County judge. The order will allow Roberson to testify in a new hearing at the state legislature next week, on Oct.

21.On Wednesday, the Texas House of Representatives voted unanimously to issue a subpoena for Roberson to appear at the hearing, thereby stalling his execution. Representatives argued executing