By Rich McKay
(Reuters) – The Texas Supreme Court said on Friday the state can set a new execution date for a man convicted of killing his toddler based on evidence of shaken baby syndrome. It finds that a legislative committee exceeded its powers in delaying the verdict.
The court granted a temporary stay in October, halting the execution so lawmakers’ request could be considered. But that stay was lifted on Friday, meaning the execution can go ahead.
In October, Robert Roberson, 57, would become the first person in the US to be executed for a murder attributed to internal brain trauma caused by violent shaking. He was convicted of murdering his two-year-old daughter Nikki in 2002.
Hours before the sentence was to be carried out, he was spared death by lethal injection because a bipartisan group of state lawmakers wanted him to testify before them about the case, and successfully petitioned the Supreme Court.
Lawmakers studied Roberson’s case as they debated whether to strengthen a Texas statute covering convictions related to so-called junk science. Although still widely accepted in the pediatric community, the theory that shaking can cause fatal brain injuries in children, especially those who show no other signs of injury, has come under fire.
In other words, “categorically prioritizing a legislative subpoena over a scheduled execution would become a powerful legal tool that could be deployed not only to obtain necessary testimony but also to prevent an execution,” the Texas Supreme Court said Friday in his ruling.
But the court also said state lawmakers can still interview Roberson as long as the testimony does not preclude a new execution date.
Roberson has maintained his innocence, saying his daughter fell out of bed and stopped breathing — days after a doctor diagnosed her with a viral infection.
Gretchen Sween, Roberson’s attorney, could not immediately be reached for comment Friday. But she said in a statement to the media: “Nikki’s death was a tragedy and not a crime; Robert is innocent.”
“Given the overwhelming new evidence of innocence, we ask the state of Texas not to set a new execution date,” she said.
(Reporting by Rich McKay in Atlanta; Editing by Frank McGurty and Nick Zieminski)
