A man faces execution in the case of a traumatized child, despite calls for clemency
Innocence Project / Ilana Panich-Linsman Robert Roberson in prisonInnocence Project / Ilana Panich-Linsman

The case of Robert Roberson is the latest in a string of high-profile death row cases that have attracted public attention in recent weeks

For more than 20 years, Robert Roberson has been awaiting execution for a crime he claims never occurred.

In 2003, he was convicted of the death of his two-year-old daughter, Nikki, after doctors and an autopsy showed she had died from injuries caused by abuse. But Roberson, his lawyers and others say she died not of “shaken baby syndrome,” as prosecutors claimed, but of complications from pneumonia.

But prosecutors insist that Roberson's new evidence does not undermine their claim that the child died from injuries inflicted by his father.

A diverse group is calling for clemency as Roberson's Oct. 17 execution date approaches. It includes 86 Texas lawmakers from both major parties, dozens of medical and scientific experts, autism advocates, lawyers and even the lead detective on the case who helped convict Roberson. There's also best-selling author John Grisham.

“In Robert's case, there was no crime, and yet in Texas we're going to kill someone for this,” Grisham told reporters in September.

In 2023, the appeals court admitted that there was insufficient evidence to overturn the verdict. The Supreme Court refused to hear his case.

Roberson's latest efforts to appeal his conviction were unsuccessful. The Texas Board of Pardon and Paroles has until Oct. 15 to recommend a pardon, which will be up to Gov. Greg Abbot to grant.

“We must do everything in our power to hit the brakes before this stains Texas justice for generations,” said Democratic state Rep. Joe Moody.

“An extraordinary number of executions”

Roberson's case is the latest in a string of high-profile death row cases that have attracted much public attention in recent weeks.

Maya Foa, director of Reprieve US, an anti-death penalty group, told the BBC that the country is currently in an “execution madness”.

Last week the Supreme Court heard arguments to overturn the murder conviction of Richard Glossip, who was found guilty of organizing the murder of his boss. He was to be executed nine times in Oklahoma.

The court will decide whether to overturn his conviction based on allegations that prosecutors withheld information about a key witness against him who also lied in his testimony.

The court has already suspended its execution.

But last month the Supreme Court refused to stay the execution Marcellus Williamsblack man convicted of murdering a journalist in 1998

Since then, prosecutors have doubted his guilt and the victim's family has opposed his execution. He was sentenced to death on September 24.

Four other men were executed in the same week as Williams, the highest execution rate since 2003, an “extraordinary” number, according to Robin Maher, executive director of the Death Penalty Information Center, a nonprofit research organization that is critical of to how the death penalty is used in America.

“The extraordinary number of executions was not the result of a single event or coordinated effort,” she said.

“They simply reflected the agendas of elected public officials who are increasingly disconnected from the interests and priorities of their constituents regarding the death penalty.”

Polls show that support for the penalty has declined over the past 30 years, with a recent Gallup poll showing that 53% of Americans favor the death penalty.

If Roberson is executed on Thursday, his death would be the 19th execution of 2024.

The likelihood of execution varies greatly from state to state. Twenty-three states do not have the death penalty, and another 15 have not executed anyone in at least five years. Last year, five states – Texas, Oklahoma, Florida, Missouri and Alabama – carried out all 24 executions.

“Shaken Baby Syndrome”

If Roberson's death sentence is carried out, he will be the first person in the U.S. executed in connection with a “shaken baby syndrome” case.

Medical experts once used the syndrome to describe brain injuries and deaths in children who were violently shaken or attacked. However, in recent years it has come under scrutiny due to the way it has been used in court cases.

In 2009, the American Academy of Pediatrics changed the name of shaken baby syndrome to “offensive head injury.” Regardless of the name, it is the leading cause of fatal brain injury in children under two years of age.

It is usually diagnosed by finding evidence of retinal hemorrhage, cerebral edema, and bleeding in the brain.

While this diagnosis is widely accepted by the medical community, a recent report highlighted the need to thoroughly investigate other causes before concluding that the injuries were the result of abuse.

“The question that needs to be answered is, 'Is there a medical reason that explains all the findings, or did the child suffer injuries as a result of his injuries?' the world's leading pediatric organizations he wrote W consensus statement published in Pediatric Radiology.

According to Roberson's account, Nikki fell out of bed before her death. He says that

he comforted her and went back to sleep – but when he woke up, she wasn't breathing and her lips were blue. Roberson says he took her to the hospital, where doctors determined she was brain dead. She died the next day.

Court documents show that medical staff immediately suspected abuse because of bruising to the head, swelling of the brain and bleeding behind the eyes. An autopsy performed after Roberson's arrest determined that she died of blunt force trauma to the head, and her death was ruled a homicide.

Roberson's lawyers argue that new evidence shows she had pneumonia at the time of her death, which progressed to sepsis.

Roberson took her to the hospital and visited doctors multiple times in the days leading up to her death. His lawyers noted that she was prescribed medications that are no longer given to children because they can cause serious complications. They say drugs and a fall may have caused the bruising, swelling and bleeding that doctors found in her brain and behind her eyes.

After his conviction, Roberson was also diagnosed with autism, which his lawyers say explains the lack of emotion police observed after his daughter's death and that biased them against him.

Brian Wharton, the lead detective in the Roberson case who testified against him at trial, is one of the people currently asking for clemency for the man.

“I will forever be haunted by the role I played in helping the state put this innocent man on death row,” he wrote in a letter of support. “Robert's case will forever remain a burden on my heart and soul.”