Texas Appeals Court Blocks Execution Of Rodney Reed

AUSTIN, TX — The Texas Court of Criminal Appeals late Friday ruled to block the execution of death row inmate Rodney Reed five days before he was scheduled to be executed, according to multiple reports.

The court's ruling came in the wake of a recommendation sent to the governor by the Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles to delay the execution for 120 days. The dual decisions come amid growing new evidence that could potentially clear Reed, 51, of killing Stacy Stites, 19, in Bastrop, Texas, 23 years ago.

Reed's DNA was found inside Stites' body by a medical examiner in 1996, but Reed has insisted it was due to consensual sex prior to her death. Legions believe his claims, including high-profile supporters such as Oprah Winfrey, "Dr. Phil" McGraw, Kim Kardashian West, Rihanna, and Meek Mill. The cause of sparing Reed from execution in light of new evidence also was taken up by Republican Sen. Ted Cruz in recent days.

From earlier:

AUSTIN, TX — The Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles on Friday recommended a 120-delay in the execution date for Rodney Reed, a Texas death row inmate set to put to death on Nov. 20.

The unanimous vote of the state parole board comes at a time of growing doubt related to Reed's guilt in the 1996 murder of Stacy Stites, 19. The vote followed a recommendation to Gov. Greg Abbott to delay the execution date.

Mounting support for Reed have lured the likes of Oprah Winfrey, "Dr. Phil" McGraw and Kim Kardashian West joining the millions more signing petitions calling for a reprieve from execution amid growing new — and potentially exculpatory — evidence. Despite the existence of new evidence that could exonerate Reed, the prisoner's fate now rests solely in the hands of Gov. Greg Abbott — who, at this point in the legal process, is the only official with the power to decide whether Reed lives or dies.

The execution date set for Reed is scheduled for Nov. 20. While Reed's DNA was found inside the woman's body at the time of her death, he has long claimed it was due to consensual sex with her prior to her death.

Photo of Rodney Reed via Texas Department of Criminal Justice.

On its website, the parole board invites members of the public to provide feedback about the imminent execution date, offering links to an email address to send correspondence: "The Board of Pardons and Paroles wants to ensure that all persons who want to provide input concerning Rodney Reed’s execution have an opportunity to do so," the body's members wrote on the agency's website.

Supporters of Reed believe his claim of innocence in the murder of Stacy Stites, 19, whose body was found along a roadway in Bastrop, Texas, in 1996. Reed was arrested for the crime after his DNA was found inside the woman's body, but he contends that was the result of consensual sex with the woman before she was killed.

The case has given rise to ugly racial overtones in that Reed is black while the victim was white.

A recommendation for a delay is just that, and the governor has the option of taking the suggestion or rejecting it. The board's recommendation centers solely on a 120-day reprieve — presumably to examine the fact of the case more closely — and is not a suggestion to commute the sentence to a lighter one.

On Thursday, Reed's family and supporters staged vigils calling for him to be spared the death penalty, staging the gatherings outside the U.S. Supreme Court building and in the inmate's Bastrop, Texas, hometown. Outside the Texas Governor's Mansion in Austin, supporters gathered for 12 hours starting Thursday evening into sunrise on Friday demanding exoneration for the condemned prisoner.

Related stories:

• Rodney Reed Supporters Stage All-Night Vigil In Austin
• Texas Death Row Inmate Gains Support As Execution Looms

Patch will update as more details are known.