Roberson Execution Temporarily Blocked in Shaken Baby Syndrome Case

A last-minute state court ruling has temporarily halted the execution of Robert Roberson, who maintains his innocence in the 2003 death of his 2-year-old daughter.

At a glance:

  • Robert Roberson’s execution, scheduled for Thursday, has been temporarily blocked by a Texas House committee, moments after the U.S. Supreme Court declined to intervene.
  • Roberson, convicted in 2003 of murdering his daughter based on now-discredited shaken baby syndrome evidence, continues to claim his innocence.
  • His case is now in limbo as the Texas criminal justice department appeals the state court ruling.

Robert Roberson, who was set to be executed by lethal injection on Thursday, has received a temporary reprieve after a Texas House committee successfully blocked his execution just hours before it was set to take place. The decision came shortly after the U.S. Supreme Court declined to intervene, with Justice Sonia Sotomayor writing that the court was “powerless to act without a colorable federal claim” but emphasized that Texas Governor Greg Abbott could still issue a 30-day delay to prevent a potential miscarriage of justice.

https://x.com/TLDR_Bytes/status/1847072731042316401

Roberson, 57, was convicted of murdering his 2-year-old daughter, Nikki Curtis, based on evidence of subdural bleeding, brain swelling, and retinal hemorrhages—symptoms that were once considered proof of shaken baby syndrome but have since been called into question by medical experts. Roberson has consistently maintained his innocence, with his attorneys arguing that Nikki died from pneumonia that led to sepsis and a fatal fall from her bed.

https://x.com/DrPhil/status/1846373546894713101

The Texas House committee’s move to subpoena Roberson and the subsequent court ruling temporarily blocking his execution adds another layer of complexity to a case that has drawn widespread attention. Despite Roberson’s claims of innocence and the emergence of new medical theories, the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals previously refused to block his execution on procedural grounds. Roberson’s attorneys, however, argue that his due process rights were violated when the state panel dismissed his case without any substantial analysis.

While the U.S. Supreme Court rarely steps in to block executions, Roberson’s case now rests on Texas’s next moves. Governor Abbott retains the authority to issue a 30-day reprieve, and the Texas criminal justice department is appealing the temporary court order that halted the execution.

Roberson would have been the first person in the U.S. executed for a conviction based on shaken baby syndrome, a medical theory that has increasingly come under scrutiny.

What do you think – is this a miscarriage of justice? Or is the story not as complicated as people seem to think?