With 15 days left, Cameron County DA refuses to revoke warrant for execution for Melissa Lucio yet
On Tuesday, the interim Texas House Committee on Criminal Justice Reform held a hearing at the Capitol to drill down on the circumstances surrounding Melissa Lucio's scheduled upcoming execution.
AUSTIN (KXAN) — On Tuesday, the interim Texas House Committee on Criminal Justice Reform held a hearing at the Capitol to drill down on the circumstances surrounding Melissa Lucio's scheduled upcoming execution.
Lucio was convicted 15 years ago of murdering her 2-year-old daughter, Mariah. She's maintained her innocence, and her lawyers now say she may have been coerced into a confession on the day her daughter died. Last week, her lawyers filed for a retrial.
Since the trial, five of the 12 jurors have come forward stating information they've learned since then would have changed the way they voted.
"I was wrong to sentence Melissa. I pray it is not too late to right the wrongs," juror Johnny Galvan, Jr.'s statement at the hearing Tuesday concluded.
Lawmakers grilled Cameron County District Attorney Luis Saenz during the hearing, asking him to revoke the warrant for Lucio's execution. That would pause the process.
"You have the power right now, single handedly, tonight, to withdraw this request, to push the pause button on her execution," State Rep. Jeff Leach (R-Allen) said during the hearing.
"I don't intend to do that, because I am not going to usurp the authority, I'm not going to usurp what a jury sat for six weeks hearing. I'm not going to usurp the authority of the court of appeals," Saenz explained.
He said he believes the court will step in before the execution on April 27.
"I believe that at some point, a state court, I believe the court of appeals is going to issue a stay," Saenz said.
"There's a lot of pending motions that need to be heard, and based on my experience, it's very rare in death cases that the execution is carried out on the first setting," the DA continued.
Leach followed up, asking what would happen if the court does not weigh in before the execution date.
"If the court does not issue a stay, and if there are still motions pending before that day, I will do what I have to do, which is recall the warrant, because it's not ready," Saenz continued.
The Board of Pardons and Paroles could recommend reprieving Lucio’s execution or commuting her sentence to life in prison, but that usually doesn't happen until 48 hours before the execution. Then, Gov. Greg Abbott could choose to deny or accept.
If not, Abbott could delay Lucio’s execution by a maximum of 30 days by granting a stay.