The scheduled execution of Robert Roberson, who was convicted of murder in the 2002 death of his 2-year-old daughter, Nikki Curtis, has been halted by the Texas Supreme Court.
The Texas Supreme Court announced on social media that it had “issued a stay” on the execution after several Republican and Democratic state lawmakers issued a subpoena for Roberson to testify at a hearing next week about his case.
“The district court granted a temporary restraining order to prevent the execution so that it can review the plaintiffs’ right to compel the inmate’s attendance before the committee,” Supreme Court Justice Evan Young wrote in an opinion.
Young added that the district court “should proceed to the underlying merits with maximum expedition, subject to this Court’s review.”
“After being told about the stay, he (Roberson) praised God and thanked his supporters,” Texas Department of Criminal Justice spokeswoman Amanda Hernandez told NBC News and USA Today.
Hernandez added to NBC News that Roberson was returned to his unit in prison. Although he received a stay, “what happens after that, we’ll have to see,” Hernandez said.
The news comes after the Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles declined to recommend clemency for Roberson and the U.S. Supreme Court declined to intervene in the days that led up to his execution, according to CNN.
A lower court then issued a temporary restraining order halting the execution on Thursday, Oct. 17, but an appeals court overturned that order. This prompted a petition to the Texas Supreme Court from state lawmakers, which proved successful.
Roberson, whose murder conviction had been called into question by numerous advocates, had been scheduled to receive a lethal injection on Thursday, Oct. 17. Prosecutors claimed his daughter’s death was a result of shaken baby syndrome, a diagnosis that refers to a serious brain injury caused when a child’s head is injured through shaking or some other violent impact, the Associated Press reported.
Want to keep up with the latest crime coverage? Sign up for PEOPLE’s free True Crime newsletter for breaking crime news, ongoing trial coverage and details of intriguing unsolved cases.
However, his attorneys had argued that she wasn’t actually murdered. Rather, they claimed she died after suffering multiple health issues due to acute viral pneumonia and inappropriate medication prescribed by doctors.
Brian Wharton, who was the lead detective investigating Nikki’s death, said he believed Roberson was innocent, especially after learning that Roberson was diagnosed with autism in 2018.
Wharton wrote a letter in support of granting Roberson clemency, saying, “I will be forever haunted by my participation in his arrest and prosecution. He is an innocent man.”
Prosecutors, meanwhile, have maintained that Roberson was guilty of murder, saying that there was evidence Nikki was shaken and had suffered abuse at the hands of her father.
“Everything that [Roberson] continues to complain of has been litigated in state and federal court, and every court has rejected his arguments,” prosecutors wrote in an Oct. 9 objection to a stay of execution.
Read the full article here