Tonight at City Hall, several North Texas lawmakers will gather to call for clemency for Melissa Lucio, who is accused of murdering her toddler 15 years ago.
Some experts call the case one of the worst miscarriages of justice they’ve ever seen, and her plight has attracted support from several Republican and Democratic Dallas-area policymakers.
Lucio’s two-year-old daughter Mariah, her 12th and youngest child, had a mild disability that made her gait unsteady at times, fell down the stairs, her mother insists. Two days later, the toddler went down for a nap and never woke up.
Lucio was convicted of murder and sentenced to death in 2008. Several North Texas lawmakers are aiding efforts to help her obtain clemency. If that fails, her execution date is April 27.
Prosecutors in Cameron County and police maintain that evidence shows that Mariah’s injuries resulted from child abuse. The Innocence Project, which has taken up her case, says there are several issues with her conviction — jurors didn’t hear forensic evidence around Mariah’s fall, for instance. They allege that Lucio’s confession was given under duress after hours of questioning.
“I’ve been doing capital defense work in Texas for 30 years now,” Sandra Babcock, a Cornell Law School professor and founder of the Cornell Center on the Death Penalty Worldwide, told the Intercept. “And this is by far the weakest capital case I’ve ever seen.”
The 5th Circuit Court of Appeals overturned Lucio’s conviction. A three-judge panel found that her right to present a complete defense was violated when the court barred testimony from two witnesses. The Cameron County District Attorney’s office appealed and convinced the same court to reinstate the conviction last year.
Lucio’s plight has been the subject of a documentary (State of Texas vs. Melissa). It also got the attention of Kim Kardashian.
“There are so many unresolved questions surrounding this case and the evidence that was used to convict her,” Kardashian said of the case.
In a letter, Lucio’s children asked Abbott to “spare the life of our mother,” adding that her execution would only exacerbate the family’s grief over the loss of Mariah.
But perhaps — given the current partisan political climate — the most notable cooperative effort to get Lucio clemency isn’t from a celebrity but a handful of local state lawmakers who have joined the fray. State representatives Jeff Leach (R-Plano), Rafael Anchia (D-Dallas), and Victoria Neave Criado (D-Dallas) are among lawmakers lobbying Abbott and the Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles.
The bipartisan effort includes visiting Lucio in person, rallies, and appearances on local radio news stations. About 80 legislators signed a letter to Abbott.
Leach says his pro-life stance compels him to advocate for Lucio.
“As a fiercely pro-life policymaker who cares deeply about ensuring liberty and justice for every single Texan, I am not afraid to talk about the immense weaknesses and fundamental problems in our system and to confront them head-on,” he said in a Facebook post. “Put simply: I strongly believe it is our utmost responsibility to ensure that anyone who is potentially innocent not be put to death by the State. Period. Full stop.”
Leach, Anchia, Criado, and fellow lawmakers Joe Moody, Toni Rose, James White, and Lacey Hull visited Lucio yesterday in Huntsville.
“In that room, hand in hand with Melissa Lucio, we were not Republicans or Democrats, we are citizens of humanity inspired to urgent action to help prevent an irreversible injustice,” she said after the visit.
Some of those same lawmakers will be at a rally held by Somos Tejas, an advocacy group for the LatinX community, tonight at 6 p.m. at Dallas City Hall. Lucio’s son, John, will also attend.
Leach said that the effort to grant Lucio clemency — or a reprieve — will continue. As the Texas House Criminal Justice Reform Committee chair, he has set a hearing for Tuesday to discuss issues surrounding the death penalty.
“This is by far the most troubling case I have ever seen and I assure you my colleagues and I will be working diligently in the coming days – until the final hour if necessary – to ensure justice is delivered in this case,” he said.
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