Skinner Case: The Moments Before the Stay

Texas death row prisoner Hank Skinner talked last night with a Texas TV station about the meal he thought would be his last and his continued resolve to seek DNA testing after the U.S. Supreme Court’s stay in his case.

Skinner, who came within minutes of his scheduled execution last week,

told CBS 11

that he was shocked to receive news of the Supreme Court’s stay: “I just kind of slid down the wall and dropped the phone,” he said.

The court’s stay is only temporary, however. The justices delayed the execution because they are deciding whether to grant a review of Skinner’s appeal seeking DNA tests on crime scene evidence that has never been tested. The could prove Skinner’s innocence or guilt, and thousands of Innocence Project supporters last week called for testing in the case.

“You know, they offered me three life sentences?,” Skinner told CBS 11.  “I turned them down. I wasn’t going to plea to something I didn’t do.”   In deciding whether to hear Skinner’s appeal, the Supreme Court made it clear that the case raises important broader issues that require a closer look. The Houston Chronicle recently offered

an analysis of the case

and former Innocence Project attorney Colin Starger wrote about the legal possibilities

here

.

Watch Skinner’s video interview on CBS11

.