Texas Supreme Court Halts Execution of Man in Shaken Baby Case After Lawmakers’ Last-Minute Appeal

Texas Supreme Court Halts Execution of Man in Shaken Baby Case After Lawmakers’ Last-Minute Appeal
FILE - Texas lawmakers meet with Robert Roberson at a prison in Livingston, Texas, Sept. 27, 2024. Criminal Justice Reform Caucus via AP, File
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HUNTSVILLE, Texas—The Texas Supreme Court halted Thursday night’s scheduled execution of a man who would have become the first person in the U.S. put to death for a murder conviction tied to a diagnosis of shaken baby syndrome.

The late-night ruling to spare for now the life of Robert Roberson, who was convicted of killing his 2-year-old daughter in 2002, capped a flurry of last-ditch legal challenges and weeks of public pressure from both Republican and Democratic lawmakers who say he is innocent and was convicted based on flawed evidence.