Post by Anja Nieser on Sept 14, 2006 11:35:18 GMT -5
Protesters march from Capitol
Protesters gathered at the Capitol on Wednesday, petitioning the Texas
Court of Criminal Appeals to conduct a new trial for Texas death row
inmate Rodney Reed.
Reed was convicted for the 1996 murder of Stacey Stites after matching DNA
evidence was discovered at the scene of the crime.
Yet, rallies for Reed's innocence have begun to gain popularity. The
documentary "State v Reed," which took home an award at the 2006 South by
Southwest Film Festival, has helped gain support from death row
abolitionists across the country for Reed.
Toddlers, protesters and members of the Reed family held banners and
gathered in front of the Capitol building before marching to the Court of
Criminal Appeals building to deliver the petition.
"We're here to let the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals know there is a
public that cares about what happens to Rodney," said Stefanie Collins,
member of the national organization the Campaign to End the Death Penalty.
"We just want justice for Rodney and his family."
Since Reed's conviction in 1998, several groups including the Campaign to
End the Death Penalty have banded together to demand a retrial claiming
that key witnesses and DNA evidence discovered at the crime scene were
left out of the trial.
"We came here to plead to the [Court of Criminal Appeals] for Rodney to
have a new trial and a fair trial," said Rodney's mother, Sandra Reed.
While a date for Rodney's execution has yet to have been set, 21 inmates
have been executed in Texas so far this year according the Death Penalty
Information Center Web site.
(source: The Daily Texan)
Protesters gathered at the Capitol on Wednesday, petitioning the Texas
Court of Criminal Appeals to conduct a new trial for Texas death row
inmate Rodney Reed.
Reed was convicted for the 1996 murder of Stacey Stites after matching DNA
evidence was discovered at the scene of the crime.
Yet, rallies for Reed's innocence have begun to gain popularity. The
documentary "State v Reed," which took home an award at the 2006 South by
Southwest Film Festival, has helped gain support from death row
abolitionists across the country for Reed.
Toddlers, protesters and members of the Reed family held banners and
gathered in front of the Capitol building before marching to the Court of
Criminal Appeals building to deliver the petition.
"We're here to let the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals know there is a
public that cares about what happens to Rodney," said Stefanie Collins,
member of the national organization the Campaign to End the Death Penalty.
"We just want justice for Rodney and his family."
Since Reed's conviction in 1998, several groups including the Campaign to
End the Death Penalty have banded together to demand a retrial claiming
that key witnesses and DNA evidence discovered at the crime scene were
left out of the trial.
"We came here to plead to the [Court of Criminal Appeals] for Rodney to
have a new trial and a fair trial," said Rodney's mother, Sandra Reed.
While a date for Rodney's execution has yet to have been set, 21 inmates
have been executed in Texas so far this year according the Death Penalty
Information Center Web site.
(source: The Daily Texan)