This morning, the Supreme Court of the United States denied an appeal to review Rodney Reed’s case, noting that the trial court in Texas will hear his case in September. Rodney was convicted for the 1997 murder of Stacey Stites and narrowly avoided being executed on two occasions.
“I remain hopeful that available state processes will take care to ensure full and fair consideration of Reed's innocence," Justice Sonia Sotomayor wrote in a statement following the decision. Read his legal team’s response.
Rodney Reed in Allan B. Polunsky Unit, West Livingston, Texas in 2015. Photo courtesy of Massoud Hayoun/ Al Jazeera.
“Reed has presented a substantial body of evidence that, if true, casts doubt on the veracity and scientific validity of the evidence on which Reed’s conviction rests,” she wrote. She added that today’s decision does not “close the door” to future review of the case, nor does it pass judgement on whether or not Rodney is innocent.
Justice Sotomayor emphasized that the questions raised by the new evidence in Rodney's case “should not be brushed aside.”
Rodney's team has already begun preparing for the hearing in the fall, and there are several ways for you to stay involved in his case:
The Innocence Project exonerates the wrongly convicted through DNA testing and reforms the criminal justice system to prevent future injustice. www.innocenceproject.org
