Supporters Call on Texas Officials to Prevent the October 16th Execution of an Innocent Man for a Crime That Never Occurred 

Her concern was echoed by Brian Wharton, the former lead detective who testified for the prosecution at Mr. Roberson’s trial, now believes firmly in his innocence and is fighting to save his life. Mr. Wharton said: “There is no shame for any of us in admitting our past errors in Robert Roberson’s case and participating in redress. However, shame and enduring culpability will attach to each of us who, because of pride or indifference, participates in compelling the execution of this innocent man.”

Also speaking today was Josh Burns who was wrongfully accused of harming his own child based on the same discredited SBS hypothesis used against Mr. Roberson. “It’s hard to overstate the nightmare of not only having a gravely ill child but being wrongly accused of harming the person you love most. We cannot allow Robert to be executed.”

Several individuals who were wrongfully convicted and exonerated in Texas also attended the rally to show their support for Mr. Roberson.

Texas State Representative John Bucy, III (D) expressed profound concern that “Texas is about to make a horrible mistake.” He urged the Governor to prevent this injustice, saying: “There is a mountain of evidence before the courts proving that Robert Roberson is innocent, and Governor Abbott can ensure they have time to review it by granting a 30-day reprieve.”

In a statement read today by Ms. Tolson, Texas State Representative Brian Harrison (R) stressed his strong support for the death penalty and explained: “it is actually because of my support for the death penalty that I have been compelled to speak out in the Robert Roberson case. I believe it is most incumbent on those of us who support the death penalty to be the most vigilant in ensuring potentially innocent people are never subjected to it. Executing a potentially innocent person who has never had due process, and who has not had a fair trial, is the opposite of justice!” Rep. Harrison also urged: “Join in me in praying that the officials who have it within their power to grant Robert Roberson a new trial do so, so that true justice can finally be delivered.”

Speakers also highlighted how Mr. Roberson’s then-undiagnosed Autism Spectrum Disorder contributed to his wrongful conviction. “Too often, people with Autism are misunderstood and misjudged when they come into contact with the criminal justice system,” said Jacquie Benestante, Executive Director of the Autism Society of Texas. “Robert didn’t present like hospital staff or the police expected a concerned father to act, so they rushed to judgment against him. That wasn’t a sign of his guilt. It was a sign of his Autism.”

Mr. Roberson’s longtime spiritual advisor, Donna Farmer, said: “I am praying that our leaders will have the wisdom and humility to correct the terrible mistake that has been made in this case.”

Gretchen Sween, Mr. Roberson’s attorney, thanked attendees for bringing attention to Mr. Roberson’s wrongful conviction. “We will continue to do everything we can to urge those in positions of power to acknowledge the overwhelming evidence of Robert’s innocence and grant a new trial at long last,” she said. “As Texans like you stand up for truth and justice, and vehemently reject the concept that a state-sanctioned killing of an innocent man can be tolerated, hope persists.”

In a statement read by Tom Mooney of Bikers for Christ, a prison ministry that has visited death row, Mr. Roberson expressed appreciation for his supporters: “I want you all to know that you all are a great big, big blessing to me.” He also said: “It is God and His grace that have kept me strong and that have kept me going for over 23 and a half years. Through all I have gone through and struggled with to stay strong, to keep hope alive, to continue to keep fighting for my actual innocence to be proven and confirmed, for God to bring me back up out of here.”

Best-selling author John Grisham has been closely following Mr. Roberson’s case and recently announced that his next non-fiction book, “Shaken: The Rush to Execute an Innocent Man,” will delve deeply into Mr. Roberson’s wrongful conviction. In a statement read on his behalf during the rally, Mr. Grisham said: “I am writing Robert’s story in real time, hoping we can bend this story away from the tragedy it has been for over twenty years now. There is the tragedy of Nikki’s death. The tragedy of her father being falsely accused based on junk “Shaken Baby” science. There is the tragedy of people in power, so far, being unwilling to admit that mistakes were made.” But, he added, “there is still time to prevent a tragic ending.”

Today’s rally reflects the widespread and mounting concern about Mr. Roberson’s case, as his execution date looms. On September 4, the Center for Integrity in Forensic Sciences released an open letter to Texas authorities signed by nearly two dozen exonerees. At a press conference announcing the letter, four exonerees – two of whom were, like Mr. Roberson, wrongfully convicted based on the SBS hypothesis – urged Texas authorities to stop his wrongful execution.

On September 24, the Autism Society of Texas and Autism Society of America issued an open letter that similarly called on Texas authorities to prevent Mr. Roberson’s wrongful execution. Those organizations also hosted a webinar entitled “Robert Roberson, Autism, and Injustice,” at which four renowned experts in Autism discussed how individuals like Mr. Roberson who are on the Autism spectrum are often misjudged and mistreated in courtrooms, police interactions, and incarceration settings. A recording of the program is available here.

On October 1, Texas State Representative Lacey Hull (R), Texas Right to Life, Family Freedom Project, family members wrongly accused of child abuse, and Crime Stoppers spoke on the impact of false allegations of child abuse by medical practitioners and the importance of due process in protecting parental and patient’s rights in end-of-life decisions. Mr. Roberson’s daughter was removed from life-sustaining treatment without her father’s knowledge or consent and in violation of Mr. Roberson’s and Nikki’s rights. Citing the evidence of Mr. Roberson’s innocence and the many flaws in his case, Crime Stoppers Houston called on Texas to grant Mr. Roberson a new trial.

On Monday, October 6, NBC’s Dateline will begin airing a four-part investigative podcast about Mr. Roberson’s case, hosted by Lester Holt, entitled “The Last Appeal.”

Mr. Roberson was a Special Education student when he dropped out of school after the 9^th grade and is a person with long-undiagnosed Autism Spectrum Disorder. In 2002, Mr. Roberson’s two-year old, chronically ill daughter, Nikki, was sick with a high fever and undiagnosed pneumonia when she suffered a short fall from bed. Doctors had prescribed her Phenergan, a powerful medication that is no longer prescribed to children Nikki’s age and in her condition because of its respiratory-suppressing effects. She was also prescribed Codeine, a narcotic, not recommended for anyone under age eighteen.

Mr. Roberson took Nikki to the emergency room, where hospital staff did not know he had Autism and judged his response to his daughter’s grave condition as lacking emotion. The police and prosecutors similarly rushed to judgment and, after Nikki was taken off life support without his knowledge or consent, Mr. Roberson was prosecuted, convicted, and sentenced to death under the now-discredited “Shaken Baby Syndrome” (SBS) hypothesis. The child abuse pediatrician who made the SBS diagnosis did not review Nikki’s medical history documenting a history of unexplained breathing apnea and dangerous prescriptions contra-indicated for a child with respiratory issues; the medical examiner who performed Nikki’s autopsy did not even review the records from her last hospitalization, including CT scans of Nikki’s head establishing she had no skull fractures or any evidence of a battery when admitted to the hospital.