Massive doubts about verdict Court halts lethal injection execution at the last second

In the US state of Texas, an execution by lethal injection has been stopped at the last second. Considerable doubts have arisen about Robert Roberson's guilty verdict.

The judiciary in the US state of Texas has stayed the execution of an autistic man at the last minute. The execution of the death sentence against 57-year-old Robert Roberson will be postponed so that he can testify before a parliamentary committee, the Supreme Court of Texas ruled on Thursday evening.

A bipartisan group of 86 Texas legislators had pushed for Roberson to be pardoned, citing "extensive new scientific evidence" and summoning him to a hearing on Monday. "If the sentence is carried out, the witness obviously cannot appear (at the hearing)," explained Judge Evan Young in his ruling.

A former investigator also has serious doubts about Roberson's guilt. "He's an innocent man and we're very close to killing him for something he didn't do," he told the review board.

Roberson had been convicted in connection with the death of his two-year-old daughter in 2002. His lawyers doubt the cause of death determined by the hospital to be shaking trauma and instead attribute the toddler's death to improperly treated pneumonia.

20 death sentences carried out

The execution of Ryan Dearman, who was convicted of murdering several people with an axe in the state of Alabama, was carried out on Thursday. The 36-year-old, who confessed to the murders, was executed with a lethal injection.

So far this year, the death penalty has been carried out 20 times in the USA. According to the Death Penalty Information Center, there were a total of 24 executions in 2023. The highest number was in 1999 with 98 executions. The death penalty has been abolished in 23 of the 50 US states. Moratoriums are in force in six other states.