[{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org\/","@type":"BlogPosting","@id":"https:\/\/www.brodenmickelsen.com\/blog\/texas-highest-court-stays-the-execution-of-death-row-inmate-rodney-reed\/#BlogPosting","mainEntityOfPage":"https:\/\/www.brodenmickelsen.com\/blog\/texas-highest-court-stays-the-execution-of-death-row-inmate-rodney-reed\/","headline":"Texas\u2019 Highest Court Stays the Execution of Death Row Inmate Rodney Reed","name":"Texas\u2019 Highest Court Stays the Execution of Death Row Inmate Rodney Reed","description":"The case of Rodney Reed, a Texas man facing execution, has made headlines across the nation in recent weeks as millions of people signed online petitions calling for the courts to take another look at the case. Texas\u2019 highest criminal court halted Reed\u2019s execution on Nov. 15, sending the case back to the trial court...","datePublished":"2019-11-20","dateModified":"2022-08-30","author":{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.brodenmickelsen.com\/blog\/author\/kissprblog\/#Person","name":"Broden & Mickelsen, LLP","url":"https:\/\/www.brodenmickelsen.com\/blog\/author\/kissprblog\/","identifier":11,"image":{"@type":"ImageObject","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/bd70e3cfe21ebfb97a169f95da73c8b9fdb6accce8b9ecb2173146feb882a8ea?s=96&d=mm&r=g","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/bd70e3cfe21ebfb97a169f95da73c8b9fdb6accce8b9ecb2173146feb882a8ea?s=96&d=mm&r=g","height":96,"width":96}},"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Broden, Mickelsen LLP","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","@id":"https:\/\/www.brodenmickelsen.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/Broden-and-Mickelsen-Logo.png","url":"https:\/\/www.brodenmickelsen.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/Broden-and-Mickelsen-Logo.png","width":378,"height":77}},"image":{"@type":"ImageObject","@id":"https:\/\/www.brodenmickelsen.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/11\/images.jpeg","url":"https:\/\/www.brodenmickelsen.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/11\/images.jpeg","height":182,"width":277},"url":"https:\/\/www.brodenmickelsen.com\/blog\/texas-highest-court-stays-the-execution-of-death-row-inmate-rodney-reed\/","about":["News"],"wordCount":554,"keywords":["Criminal Charges","criminal defense attorney","death penalty","texas execution"],"articleBody":"The case of Rodney Reed, a Texas man facing execution, has made headlines across the nation in recent weeks as millions of people signed online petitions calling for the courts to take another look at the case.Texas\u2019 highest criminal court halted Reed\u2019s execution on Nov. 15, sending the case back to the trial court to review several claims, most importantly that Reed is innocent of the murder that landed him on death row more than two decades ago.Earlier that day, the Texas Observer reported, the Texas Board of Pardons and Parole\u2014a seven-strong panel of gubernatorial appointees\u2014issued a unanimous recommendation to Governor Greg Abbott that he grant a 120-day stay of Reed\u2019s execution.This was an extremely rare move for the board, according to Kristin Houl\u00e8, executive director of the Texas Coalition to Abolish the Death Penalty.Ultimately, Abbott did not get to decide on the recommendation. Just hours later the Texas Criminal Court of Appeals referred the case back to the trial court to examine new evidence and reconsider key parts of the case, including Reed\u2019s innocence.Reed\u2019s case attracted enormous attention with many lawmakers and even A-list celebrities making a case for the execution to be put on hold.Reed is now 51. He was convicted and given a death sentence for the 1996 murder of 19-year-old Stacey Stites in Bastrop.He claimed his innocence for more than two decades. His claims were backed up by new evidence from his lawyers. Last week, they presented evidence indicating Reed\u2019s innocence in Stites\u2019 death. That evidence instead placed suspicion on her fianc\u00e9, Jimmy Fennell.The Texas Tribune reported both Reed and Fennell were accused of multiple sexual assaults. Reed was indicted but never convicted, in other rape cases. Fennell spent 10 years in prison following the kidnapping and alleged rape of a woman while on duty as a police officer in 2007.Police found the body of Stites partially unclothed in Bastrop County after she failed to show up to her grocery store job. Court records showed Fennell\u2019s truck was found abandoned in a school parking lot near the murder scene. Pieces of Stites\u2019 belt, believed to be used in her strangulation, were found at both locations.Fennell was the original suspect. Reed fell under suspicion a year later when sperm cells that matched him were found in the victim\u2019s body. Reed said he had a consensual affair with Stites. His lawyers said this theory was discredited because Reed was an African American man in rural Texas and Stites was white. Reed was convicted by an all-white jury.Reed was scheduled to be executed on Nov. 20 before the ruling by the Texas Criminal Court of Appeals.The nonprofit Innocence Project, which has fought for Reed in his effort to avoid execution, tweeted that the court granted a stay of execution that was \u201cindefinite.\u201d The ruling was posted to the court\u2019s website.The case will now be reviewed and subject to a new trial. The highest court in Texas has halted many executions in recent years but the Lone Star State continues to use the death penalty more than any other.If you or a family member is facing a capital murder charge or is looking to appeal a conviction please contact our experienced Dallas criminal defense team today."},{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org\/","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Blog","item":"https:\/\/www.brodenmickelsen.com\/blog\/#breadcrumbitem"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Texas\u2019 Highest Court Stays the Execution of Death Row Inmate Rodney Reed","item":"https:\/\/www.brodenmickelsen.com\/blog\/texas-highest-court-stays-the-execution-of-death-row-inmate-rodney-reed\/#breadcrumbitem"}]}]