PALESTINE, Texas — State Rep. Cody Harris alongside seven other representatives on Thursday filed a document denouncing the actions of a House committee that helped stop death row inmate Robert Roberson's execution.
Roberson III, 57, was set to be executed Thursday, Oct. 17, in connection with the 2003 Anderson County conviction in the death of his 2-year-old daughter Nikki Curtis. He has claimed his innocence for roughly two decades with his lawyer citing junk science as the reason for his conviction. According to the Associated Press, Roberson would have been the first person in the U.S. to be executed over a "Shaken Baby Syndrome" conviction.
Amid a multitude of legal battles, Roberson's execution was blocked by the Texas Supreme Court in response to the subpoena filed by the Texas House on Criminal Jurisprudence. The committee sought to have Roberson virtually testify before the committee on Monday, but he ultimately did not because representatives had concerns over his autism and current technology. Dr. Phil McGraw and best-selling author John Grisham testified on his behalf.
Following this hearing, Roberson's future remains uncertain. In a statement released this week, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton said the claims that Roberson was unfairly convicted through “junk science” are false and the representatives overstepped their authority.
In a brief filed with the Texas Supreme Court, Harris, who represents Anderson, Cherokee, Navarro and part of Henderson counties, and other representatives said the committee held a "one-sided trial" that "left Nikki and her family without the justice they deserve." The eight representatives wrote they're urging the Supreme Court to "ensure Roberson's murder does not go unpunished."
The brief details that Roberson allegedly made at least five different "whodunnit" explanations of what caused Nikki's death over the past two decades. Some of those stories include the child was a clumsy kid who fell out of the bed from a height of just 22 inches and fell to her death, Roberson told his girlfriend that he might've "snapped" and killed the girl and now claims of Nikki being a sickly child with pneumonia.
"Robert Roberson was found guilty of murdering Nikki by causing blunt force trauma to her head, and Nikki's family has yet to receive the justice it deserves," Harris said. "The 'trial' in the House of Representatives last week conveniently left out a multitude of important facts, including evidence showing Nikki died from blunt force head injuries. The hearing did not acknowledge Roberson's physical abuse of a 2-year-old girl and her subsequent fear of her own father. Nothing I can do or say will heal the pain Nikki's family has experienced over the last 20 years. As their representative in the Texas House, I will do everything in my power to support them and ensure long overdue justice is finally carried out."
Alongside Harris, state Rep. Cole Hefner, who represents Camp, Rains, Titus, Upshur, Wood and part of Smith counties, joined in the writing of the brief. Reps. Cecil Bell, Jr., Greg Bonnen, Briscoe Cain, Mark Dorazio, Tom Oliverson and Tony Tinderholt are among the other legislators named as authors.
In the brief, the authors say the House committee's subpoena attempted to unwind Texas' constitutional order. They said more than 100 votes from state and federal court judges have reaffirmed Roberson’s conviction and sentence.
"Those waging this campaign on a child-murderer’s behalf do not speak for the full Texas House of Representatives," the document read.
WFAA's Matt Houston said Texas law does not allow Roberson's execution to be rescheduled for a date earlier than Jan. 15. By then, the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals will have three new judges stemming from the Nov. 5 election.
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