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CCA Orders Hearing in Roderick Newton Case

By Steve Hall

"Stay of execution granted for man convicted in '99 Pleasant Grove murder," is the title of Jennifer Emily's report in today's Dallas Morning News.  You can view the CCA order here.The Texas Court of Criminal Appeals on Wednesday granted a stay of execution for a man who was to die today and ordered a lower court to determine whether he deserves a new trial and whether he is mentally retarded.Defense attorneys had argued that Roderick Newton, who was found guilty of kidnapping and murdering 20-year-old Jesus Montoya in a Pleasant Grove ATM robbery in 1999, did not get a fair trial because police failed to hand over evidence that would have questioned the credibility of a co-defendant who testified against him.The Dallas County district attorney's office supported Newton's attorney's efforts to halt the execution after agreeing that Mesquite police withheld a written statement that contradicted the co-defendant's testimony...continue to full post

Full post as published by StandDown Texas Project on July 23, 2009 (boomark / email).