In this edition:
Scheduled executions: Voice your opposition to the execution of Cedric Ricks
Updates on innocence cases: Charles Flores files petition with the United States Supreme Court; four men deemed actually innocent of the 1991 Yogurt Shop Murders in Austin; exonerees launch Unshaken Truth podcast to help Robert Roberson and others
TCADP 2026 Annual Conference: Supporters will gather this weekend in Houston
New staff member: Introducing TCADP’s Harris County Field Organizer
Texas 2026 Primary Election: Tuesday, March 3, is Primary Election Day
Featured events: Cesar E. Chavez March for Justice in San Antonio on March 28; TCADP Book Group meeting on April 22 on Zoom
Amplify Austin 2026: Donate between March 4 and 5 to help TCADP reimagine justice
Quote of the month
“A state decides that a kind of evidence is so unreliable that it should not be used in any criminal case but is willing to see someone put to death when that kind of evidence was used to convict him. What kind of justice is that?”
– Austin Sarat, “Texas Is Planning to Put an Innocent Man to Death. Will the Supreme Court Even Take the Case?”, Slate, February 13, 2026
The State of Texas is scheduled to execute Cedric Ricks on March 11, 2026. He was convicted of killing his estranged girlfriend, Roxann Sanchez, and her 8-year-old son, Anthony Figueroa in 2013 in Tarrant County.
CALL TO ACTION
Voice your opposition to this execution. Please contact the Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles and Texas Governor Greg Abbott in support of Mr. Ricks’s application for clemency.
Here is the main message to convey:
“Cedric Ricks’s mother, loved ones, and friends ask for mercy. They, and Cedric, recognize the harm his actions have caused, but request mercy in light of his rehabilitation and spiritual growth since his incarceration. Please do everything in your power to stop his execution.”
Email the Board at bpp_clemency@tdcj.texas.gov.
Leave a message for Governor Abbott at https://gov.texas.gov/contact/.
To date in 2026, four people have been executed nationwide, including Charles Thompson in Texas. Florida, which put 19 people to death in 2025, has executed two people this year and has three more executions scheduled this month. Alabama is scheduled to execute Charles “Sonny” Burton on March 12; he participated in the crime but was not the shooter. Please sign the petition urging clemency for Burton.
Updates on innocence cases
Charles Flores seeks review by the United States Supreme Court
On February 6, 2026, counsel for Charles Don Flores filed a petition for writ of certiorari in the Supreme Court of the United States. Flores was sentenced to death in Texas in 1999 based on an in-court identification by a witness who had been subjected to a highly suggestive “investigative hypnosis” session conducted by police involved in the murder investigation.
Inspired in part by Flores’s own case, Texas law now bans the use of testimony affected by “investigative hypnosis” in criminal proceedings. Despite this, the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals has repeatedly denied Flores the opportunity to present the evidence of his innocence.
CALL TO ACTION
Please join us in urging the authorities in Texas to grant Flores a new trial. Sign the petition.
And if you missed last month’s episode of Pablo Torre Finds Out, “The Wrongfully Convicted Football Fan Who’s Running Out of Time,” check it out now! In the episode, Charles Flores talks with Pablo Torre about his beloved Dallas Cowboys, what it’s like to watch the Super Bowl on death row, and how he has been fighting to prove his innocence for over 25 years. The episode is available as a podcast as well as on YouTube.
Four men formally exonerated of the 1991 Yogurt Shop murders in Austin
“The court can and does state without qualification and hesitation that you are cleared and that your innocence is affirmed.” On February 19, 2026, family members and supporters of the four men wrongfully accused and/or convicted of killing four teenage girls in the Yogurt Shop Murders in 1991 gathered for a long overdue hearing in Austin. After listening to heartwrenching statements from the men and their families—and from Austin Police Cold Case Detective Daniel Jackson about the real killer—Travis County Judge Dayna Blazey declared the four men actually innocent.
Two of the men—Michael Scott and Robert Springsteen—were convicted and Springsteen was sentenced to death. Both men were 17 at the time the four teenage girls were killed. While the charges against Scott and Springsteen were dropped after their convictions were overturned in 2006, they were still on the record. Austin police revealed last September that new DNA and forensic evidence link the murders of Amy Ayers, Eliza Thomas, Jennifer Harbison, and Sarah Harbison to a known serial killer.
The exoneration hearing was requested by the Travis County District Attorney’s (DA) Office. In his remarks afterwards, DA José Garza apologized to everyone affected by the murders: “I hope that this process and any process that comes after affords you peace and freedom.”
Exonerees launch new podcast to be a voice for Robert Roberson and others wrongfully convicted
This week, exonerees Josh Burns and Andrew Roark will launch the Unshaken Truth podcast, in which they examine the causes and impacts of wrongful convictions resulting from the “Shaken Baby Syndrome” hypothesis and other forms of junk science. With the podcast, they aim to be a voice for others who have been wrongfully accused and convicted of harming children in their care—people like Robert Roberson. Both Josh and Andrew have advocated for Robert. TCADP will honor Josh for his efforts at the TCADP 2026 Annual Conference this weekend in Houston.
The first episode of Unshaken Truth, which dropson Thursday, March 5, 2026, will feature an interview with best-selling author John Grisham, who has been closely following Robert’s case and is writing a non-fiction book about it. Links to episodes and other materials are available on the show’s website.
This weekend, advocates from across Texas and beyond will gather in Houston for the first time in 10 years for TCADP’s Annual Conference. Overcoming Legacies; Reimagining Justice will feature workshops, a panel discussion, and a keynote address from Professor Corinna Barrett Lain, the author of Secrets of the Killing State: The Untold Story of Lethal Injection, which was published in April 2025. One of the highlights of the day will be the awards luncheon, when TCADP will honor seven extraordinary individuals.
Date: Saturday, March 7, 2026
Time: Check-in opens at 9:00 AM; the program will begin at 10:00 AM and run until 4:00 PM
Location: United Way Community Resource Center (50 Waugh Drive, Houston, Texas 77007)
Read about our speakers and award recipients here.
Pre-registration closes at 11:59 PM CT on Wednesday, March 4, 2026.
New TCADP staff member
TCADP is thrilled to introduce our first-ever Harris County Field Organizer: Timberly Vogel!
Timberly is currently pursuing a PhD in Sociology at Texas A&M University, where she studies the intersection of criminal law, community safety, and social inequality. After graduating from the University of Wyoming, she co-founded the Laramie Human Rights Network, a grassroots organization focused on racial, social, and criminal justice. In that role, she collaborated with community members, local officials, and partner organizations to address issues of transparency, accountability, and access to mental health resources in rural areas.
Timberly has also conducted policy research for the Southern Poverty Law Center, examining how community-based responses to crime can produce measurable financial and social benefits for metropolitan areas. Through this work, Timberly has seen firsthand how policy decisions shape communities and developed a commitment to reform that is both principled and practical. She brings this commitment to her role with TCADP, where she plans to connect research, community voices, and advocacy in the ongoing effort to end capital punishment. In her free time, Timberly enjoys cycling, sewing, and going on adventures with her cat, Pinto.
Timberly’s first day is March 2, 2026, and she will attend the TCADP 2026 Annual Conference this weekend in Houston. Please send her a welcome note at Timberly@tcadp.org.
Texas 2026 Primary Election
Tuesday, March 3, 2026, is Primary Election Day in Texas. Candidates for the Texas Legislature, the Texas Supreme Court, the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals, and numerous other statewide and local offices are on the ballot. District Attorney candidates are on the ballot in Tarrant, Dallas and Bexar counties, among others.
Learn more about what races are on the ballot and who is running from the Texas Tribune.
30th Annual Cesar E. Chavez March for Justice
Please join TCADP supporters in San Antonio for the 30th Annual Cesar E. Chavez March for Justice on Saturday, March 28, 2026.
Meet up with the TCADP contingent: Between 9:00 and 9:45 AM at the corner of S. Brazos and El Paso Street; this is near the stage of pre-March events outside the Guadalupe Theater (1301 Guadalupe St). Look for the TCADP banner or email coordinator Mardi Baron at mardibaron@gmail.com to let her know you’ll be there.
March: 10:00 to 11:00 AM (it is a two-mile walk)
Community celebration: 11:15 AM to 1:30 PM at Hemisfair Civic Park with music, food, and speakers
VIA bus service is available to drop participants off at the March site and pick them up at Hemisfair Park at the end of the event. VIA park and ride also will be available from Our Lady of the Lake University for free.
TCADP Book Group
The TCADP Book Group meets every six to eight weeks on Zoom and reads a mix of fiction, non-fiction, and memoirs. Our next reading selection is Devil in the Grove: Thurgood Marshall, the Groveland Boys, and the Dawn of a New America by Gilbert King. We will discuss this book on Wednesday, April 22, 2026, at 7:00 PM CT on Zoom.
Register here to receive book group announcements and meeting links. (Note: If you have signed up for previous book group meetings, you do not need to register again.)
Amplify Austin
TCADP seeks your support during Amplify Austin, a 24-hour online fundraising event taking place from 6:00 PM CT on Wednesday, March 4 to 6:00 PM CT on Thursday, March 5, 2026. Your gift advances our efforts to overcome the legacy of the death penalty and reimagine justice in Texas. Please help us reach our modest goal of raising $2,500 in 24 hours.
Thank you for standing with us in the relentless pursuit of justice in Texas!