Today the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals halted the execution of Rodney Reed, which was scheduled to take place on March 5th. The court issued the stay to consider new evidence that may establish Reed’s innocence in the 1996 murder of Stacey Stites.
Here’s a statement from Reed’s lawyer, Bryce Benjet, a staff attorney with the Innocence Project, which is affiliated with Cardozo School of Law:
We’re extremely relieved that the court has stayed Mr. Reed’s execution so there will be proper consideration of the powerful new evidence of his innocence. We are also optimistic that this will give us the opportunity to finally conduct DNA testing that could prove who actually committed the crime.
The new evidence includes affidavits that confirm Reed’s romantic relationship with Stites and statements from three forensic examiners who reviewed the case and believe Stites was likely killed hours earlier than previously thought, challenging the timeline of her death as presented at Reed’s trial.
Six judges on the Court of Criminal Appeals agreed to the stay, which is “pending further order of this court.”
Read more about today’s ruling from the Texas Tribune and the Austin American-Statesman.
A copy of the court’s order is available at http://www.innocenceproject.org/docs/ReedR_wrt07_ord.pdf.