This undated handout photo provided by the Texas Department of Criminal Justice shows Melissa Lucio. Now, Melissa Lucio, a mom of 13, has until the end of the month to convince the Texas governor to grant her clemency and at least allow a jury to hear new evidence. Despite that evidence of innocence, Texas officials have scheduled Melissa's execution for April 27, 2022. Lucios case has been of particular interest to psychiatric and forensic experts, because it may demonstrate a phenomenon theyre just starting to understand. She says she was coerced to confess by a Texas Ranger during her interrogation. Greg Abbott to either grant an execution reprieve or commute her sentence. The trial court barred Pinkerman from testifying during the culpability phase of Lucios trial, asserting that his testimony was irrelevant because Lucio had denied ever having anything to do with the killing of the child. They also denied the testimony of social worker Norma Villanueva during the culpability phase of Lucios trial they were only allowed to testify at her penalty phase, after she had been convicted. Here's what we know. But the stay of execution and the remand for consideration of these claims is extraordinarily significant, Dunham added, describing the ruling this week as an open door, a threshold that had to be crossed for Melissa Lucio to have her day in court.. Melissa Lucio had long maintained her innocence. Citing a neuroscientist, it says scientific consensus today is there is no basis for the idea that some facial and body movements can reveal someones mental state. She is the first Latina woman sentenced to death by the State of Texas and the first woman set to be executed by the state since 2014. He can grant clemency if a majority of the paroles board recommends it. Melissa Lucio was the first Hispanic woman sentenced to death in Texas. You feel hopeless," Deskovic told The Sun. Did you encounter any technical issues? Lucio a new trial a rarity for a circuit court that had overturned only one of 150 Texas capital convictions or death sentences imposed after 2000. An appeals lawyer for Lucio filed a clemency petition with the federal government, citing medical experts who say that Mariah's bruising was caused by a fall. I encourage legislators to ask the tough questions and to review the documents, the transcripts, the case file, to call us or call her attorneys, and to figure out where you are on this case, one way or another., His colleague Mr Moody, added: It is easy to dismiss people like Melissa Lucio. Since its introduction execution has generated an array of responses. Her lawyers argue she falsely admitted to killing Mariah after hours of intense police questioning and that she died from falling down a steep staircase outside their apartment in Harlingen, South Texas, and not from being beaten. Want to keep up with the latest crime coverage? Melissa Lucio is scheduled to be executed next week for a crime she says she didn't commit one that may not have even occurred. Her body was discovered in a trash bin at their home. An April 27 execution date has been scheduled for a Harlingen mom sitting on death row. One of the detectives, a Texas Ranger named Victor Escalon Jr., zeroed in on Lucios slumped posture and lack of eye contact. One week from today, Texas plans to execute Melissa Lucio for the death of her daughter, despite widespread concern she is innocent. Melissa Lucio, only Latina on Texas death row, seeks clemency as execution looms. Walker worked on the case of Darlene Green, who was convicted of killing her husband in 2010 in Washington. Is Zozofit Scam or Legit (2022) Our Honest Review! I guess I did it. A videotape played to the jury showed Escalon asking Lucio to demonstrate how she spanked Mariah, and when she didnt spank hard enough, he spanked the doll himself. With all the police brutality that is being reported and visibly recorded in public, she wrote in a message from prison, can you imagine what goes on behind closed doors of an interrogation room?. The autopsy showed Mariah had a blood coagulation disorder caused by the fall, which caused the bruising, Potkin said. Lucio has always maintained her innocence. Melissa Lucio, 52, was convicted of murder in the 2007 death of her 2-year-old daughter, Mariah, and had been scheduled to be executed Wednesday. State lawmakers in New York are considering a ban on deceiving suspects. The prosecution characterized Lucios interrogation as evidence that she had abused her daughter, and therefore must have killed her. Lucio, 53, was set to be executed Wednesday for capital murder in the 2007 death of her 2-year-old daughter. A Warner Bros. She initially said Mariah had fallen down a staircase outside the familys apartment in Harlingen, Texas, a small city near the Mexico border. Do not trust anyone calling from this area code, they are most likely scammers! "Melissa had multiple vulnerabilities and susceptibilities for making a false incriminating . Texas is executing an innocent woman, Juror who sentenced Melissa Lucio to death for daughters murder calls for retrial: I was wrong, EU adds to calls on Texas for clemency in Melissa Lucio case - latest, Bipartisan group of Texas lawmakers visit Lucio in prison, Melissa Lucios son hopes for clemency as execution date nears, Juror calls for retrial of woman he sentenced to death for murder of her daughter, Kim Kardashian posts heartbreaking letter from Lucios children, The Independent raises Melissa Lucio death penalty case before the White House. But theyre optimistic: Mondays ruling opens the door to the potential of a new trial, said Vanessa Potkin, director of special litigation at the Innocence Project, and ultimately, complete vindication.. During the interrogation, she was grieving and in shock, sleep-deprived, pregnant, and "vulnerable to the aggressive, intimidating and psychologically manipulative tactics" of the police, according to the clemency application. She married again and had nine more children. Melissa Lucio holds her. In November 2021, Oklahoma governor Kevin Stitt called off the execution of Julius Jones, a Black death row inmate who has long maintained his innocence in the 1999 murder that put him behind bars. Deskovic was interrogated for seven hours in 1990 for a rape and murder that he didn't commit while being food-deprived. At times, they were homeless and relied on food banks for meals, according to the petition. We'll assume you're ok with this, but you can opt-out if you wish. Melissa Lucio, 53, is scheduled to be executed April 27 for the 2007 death of her daughter Mariah. No matter what, you can always turn to The Marshall Project as a source of trustworthy journalism about the criminal justice system. The Times reports that during a hearing at the State Capitol in April, legislators urged Cameron County District Attorney Luis. Can we count on your support today? Born in 1969, Melissa, from Harlingen in south Texas, was convicted of the murder of her two-year-old daughter, Mariah, who died of blunt-force trauma to the head on February 17, 2007. A DEATH row inmate was convicted on a coerced confession during a five-hour interrogation and false medical testimonies, her lawyer said. Many object to the inconsistency with which the US death penalty is applied across the country. The medical examiner who conducted Mariahs autopsy also offered false testimony, Lucios attorneys say. This testimony has since been proven scientifically baseless and false, Lucios habeas application says. After Melissa was sent away to prison, Melissa's eldest daughter Daniela took primary responsibility for raising her then-underage siblings. Lucio is set to be executed on April 27 for the 2007 death of Mariah. "Do it real hard," he said. His work on film sets includes Don de Dios, La familia de m, Insomnia, Venga la Alegra, and, Read More Fernando Del Solar Children: Luciano Cacciamani Coronado, Paolo Caiamani CoronadoContinue, In July of 2018, there were rumors going around that the creator of Roblox had died. Prosecutors said Lucio beat the girl to death, pointing to bruising on Mariah's body and a broken arm as evidence of abuse. When Megan Crane, a St. Louis-based lawyer with the MacArthur Justice Center, a civil rights organization, began noticing that her teenage clients may have falsely confessed after experiencing trauma, she looked for research to cite in her court arguments, and couldnt find much. Plus, Crackedstreams.ig offers a variety of features that are not available on, Read More Crackedstreams.ig (2022) Discover More About It Here!Continue, Your email address will not be published. The Innocence Project lawyer said police continued to feed Lucio facts that she spit back at them to end the interrogation. Lucio was particularly susceptible to pressure by investigators given her lifelong history of trauma. This, too, her attorneys say, is new evidence that was not available at the time of her trial, and her jury did not hear testimony from an expert on false confession. Like us on Facebook atwww.facebook.com/TheSunUSand follow us from our main Twitter account at@TheSunUS, 2020 THE SUN, US, INC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED | TERMS OF USE | PRIVACY | YOUR AD CHOICES | SITEMAP, Melissa Lucio, a mom of 13, is on death row and is hoping new evidence will exonerate her, Jeffrey Deskovic, who started the Deskovic Foundation after he was exonerated and became a lawyer, gave a false confession that was used against him, Lucio, 53, is scheduled to be executed on April 27 for the murder of her two-year-old daughter Mariah in 2007, Deskovic said long interrogations break your will and you'll say anything 'to get out of there', I was coerced into confessing to murder in case with eerie similarities to Melissa Lucio here are tactics police use, Smiley Martin pictured as brother While prosecutors argued at trial that Lucio was an abusive mother who caused the injuries that led to the girls death, Lucios attorneys say those injuries were the result of a fall down stairs two days earlier outside the familys apartment. But Lucio's lawyers contend Mariah's death was an accident caused by falling down the stairs and not a crime. As per the records, Melissa was under custody for abusing her 2-year-old daughter Mariah in February 2007. At trial, the medical examiner testified for the state the injuries could only be caused by abuse, pointing over the course of her testimony to the severe bruising across Mariahs body, a fracture in her arm from several weeks before her death and purported bite marks on her back. The state of Texas has issued a death warrant seeking to execute Melissa Lucio (pictured), a battered woman who was sentenced to death for what may have been an accidental fall that killed her two-year-old daughter. In grainy video footage of an interrogation, a Texas Ranger grills Melissa Lucio, a forty-year-old mother who is slumped in a chair, with an exhausted and vacant look in her eyes. Crackedstreams.ig (2022) Discover More About It Here! That's what Potkin said happened to Lucio in 2007. In the film, director Sabrina Van Tassel presents evidence that Lucio was wrongly convicted and sentenced to death. Her lawyers say new evidence shows that the cause of her daughter's injuries and subsequent death were caused by a fall down a steep staircase outside their apartment in Harlingen, Texas. New evidence and expert testimony emerged casting strong doubt on her guilt. She is on Texas's death row despite forensic and eyewitness evidence that her daughter died from a head injury she suffered in a fall. During the interrogation, Lucio. Prosecutors say Lucio fatally beat her 2-year-old daughter but Lucio has long denied that, saying Mariah died from injuries sustained during a fall down a flight of stairs. At the time of her death, Mariahs body was covered in bruises in various stages of healing, her arm had been broken several weeks earlier and she had what authorities believed was a bite mark on her back, court documents show. Fourteen years after she was sent to Texas death row, Melissas Lucio will finally get the chance to have new evidence of her innocence claims examined in state court. With this evidence in mind, four jurors said they have "grave concerns" about evidence withheld from them during the trial and would support relief, according to the clemency application. PEOPLE's call to Saenz' office seeking comment after Monday's ruling was not immediately returned. The Marshall Project and The 19th could not reach Lucios two ex-husbands, but Sabrina Van Tassel, the filmmaker who directed The State of Texas vs. Melissa, a documentary on the case, said both declined to speak to her on the record. Greg Abbott, whose office declined to comment. Lucio was in the process of moving when Mariah got through a screen door and fell down the stairs, Potkin said. Lucio has always maintained her innocence. Lucio suffered a lifetime of sexual abuse and domestic violence, "which made her especially vulnerable to the polices coercive interrogation tactics," Potkin said. Lucio's lawyers say this new evidence shows Mariah's injuries resulted from a fall down the stairs two days prior to her death, which Lucio herself had told police about immediately following the child's death, reports The New York Times. If I could take back my vote, I would.". As a result, the testimony of these witnesses was false, Lucios attorneys argue, entitling her to relief. MELISSA ELIZABETH LUCIO, Appellant v. THE STATE OF TEXAS ON DIRECT APPEAL. Lucio was sentenced in 2008 for the death of her 2-year-old daughter, one of Lucio's 14 children. As part of this claim, Lucios attorneys also work to knock down her alleged confession. . Another supporting brief from the Innocence Project and Innocence Network explained how the police interrogation of Lucio employed high risk tactics that increased the likelihood of a false confession. In this undated photograph, Texas death row inmate Melissa Lucio is holding her daughter Mariah, while one of her other daughters, Adriana, stands next to them. Lucio's lawyers have said her flat affect during interrogation raised the suspicions of authorities, causing them to zero in on her. Lucio's attorneys had filed for clemency last month, about a month before her scheduled execution date, reports Texas Public Radio. A woman facing execution in Texas for killing her daughter is seeking clemency, claiming she was coerced into confessing to the crime. Lucio admitted to having spanked Mariah but denied ever having abused her. ", Vanessa Potkin, director of special litigation at The Innocence Project, told CBS that Lucio asserted her innocence more than 100 times during the five-hour interrogation, but authorities "refused to listen to her, sending the clear message that this interrogation wasn't going to stop until she told the officers what they wanted to hear. And bite mark evidence and analysis has since been determined to be invalid and unreliable, it says, noting forensic odontologists have found expert testimony identifying injuries as a human bite mark is without a scientific basis.. But experts say the small number who are sentenced to death usually break societys expectations of a good woman. He also stated that Lucio's execution would be a terrible tragedy. The announcement came just hours before Jones was set to die by lethal injection. On 18 October, the US Supreme Court denied a petition to hear Lucios case, paving the way for the state of Texas to set the date for her execution to be carried out by lethal injection on 27 April. The South Texas mother of 14 is on. (Denise Cathey/The Brownsville Herald) Melissa Lucio is facing the death penalty for the murder of her six-year-old daughter. Her daughter's physique was present in a trash can at their house. Twenty-seven states across America still have the death penalty. SinceDeath By Mama is a documentary about a death-row inmate that airs on ABC, amazing images of Melissa Lucios death are being released. Researchers say the risk of a false confession applies not only to traumatized kids, but also to adult victims of domestic violence. Twitter Lucio's lawyers with the Innocence Project have said Mariah "had a mild physical disability that made her unstable while walking and prone to tripping.". - advertisement - Lucio has often claimed that her daughter wandered away from the home, lost and was killed by a vehicle which drove past while she was trying to find her. The mother of 14, who is the first and only Hispanic woman on death row in Texas, has spent the last 14 years awaiting execution for a crime she says she didnt commit. Escalon is now a senior official at the Texas Department of Public Safety, where a spokesman declined to make him available for an interview. Josh Marcus reported on the case for The Independent. Her conviction rested on ambiguous statements Melissa made to police in response to a coercive, late-night interrogation by male police officers. is a staff writer whose book, "Let the Lord Sort Them: The Rise and Fall of the Death Penalty," won the 2019 J. Anthony Lukas Work-In-Progress Book Award. Sandra Babcock, one of Ms. Lucio's lawyers and the director of the Cornell Center on the Death Penalty Worldwide, told The Times, "Police targeted Melissa because she didn't fit their image of how a grieving mother should behave. The child was in a very serious condition, but she died a few hours later. Let the Lord Sort Them: The Rise and Fall of the Death Penalty. At her trial, prosecutors framed her admissions as a full confession. Email us atexclusive@the-sun.comor call212 416 4552. The state says Lucio beat her daughter to death. Common causes of the blood disorder are head trauma like that suffered in a fall down a steep flight of stairs and infection, which Mariah appears to have been battling when she died, the habeas application states. In this April 6, 2022 photo provided by Texas state Rep. Jeff Leach, Texas death row inmate Melissa Lucio, dressed in white, leads a group of seven Texas lawmakers in prayer in a room at the . But Mariah had bruises, bite marks and other injuries. "Show me how. The images have also provoked controversy about the issue of whether Lucio should be punished with the death penalty for her crimes. I know she's innocent.' European nations, a juror, Kim Kardashian, and a bipartisan group of lawmakers are among those pleading for Lucios life. ", After denying the allegations over 100 times during the lengthy interrogation, Lucio told investigators, "I guess I did it.". Given the evidence, much of it outlined above, no rational juror would have found Ms. Lucio guilty beyond a reasonable doubt, it says. Its obvious the intersection exists, but its a vacuum, she said. The six of us, in conjunction with our House colleagues, are asking for the Board of Pardons and Paroles to spare her life and delay her execution, which is currently scheduled in about a month on April 27.. In February 2007, Mariah died from injuries which prosecutors claimed were caused by Lucio abusing her daughter. Authorities, her attorneys say, decided Mariahs injuries were abuse and set out to confirm that theory while ignoring evidence that might prove Lucios innocence. It was later discovered that Mariah's arm had been broken two to seven weeks prior to her passing away. The Texas court of criminal appeals has issued a stay of execution for Melissa Lucio, the Mexican-American woman who was set to be judicially killed within 48 hours . One of the jurors who sentenced Melissa Lucio to death has written a newspaper editorial claiming he was misled and pressured during the mother's trial for murdering her two-year-old daughter . Lucio's 13 children wrote a letter to the Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles and Gov. It's like Cameron County prosecutor Alfredo Padilla said "the decision was based on evidence and evidence alone". The U.S. Supreme Court declined to hear her case last year, but a brief from advocates and experts on domestic violence questioned the Texas Rangers claim that Lucios slumped posture and other passive behavior suggested she was guilty and ready to confess. Melissa Lucio was sentenced to death after being convicted of killing her two-year-old daughter Mariah Oliver O'Connell7 April 2022 08:00 9 months ago Breaking society's expectations: Why. Legal Expert Weighs In, Derek Chauvin's Attorney Asks Minnesota Appeals Court to Void Guilty Verdict in George Floyd's Killing, Todd and Julie Chrisley's Lawyer Discusses Their Appeal and the Moment That 'Should've Stopped the Whole Case', Scott Peterson Denied a New Trial, Will Remain in Jail for Murdering His Pregnant Wife Laci, N.C. Man Killed Girlfriend's Daughter, 3, with Chloroform in Attempt to Get Her to Sleep, Ex-Border Patrol Agent Convicted in the Deaths of 4 South Texas Women: Report, How a True Crime Podcast Freed 2 Georgia Men Wrongfully Imprisoned 25 Years on Murder Conviction, Laci Peterson's Family Feels 'Relief' After Scott Peterson Denied a New Trial: 'Best Christmas Gift Ever', Man Freed After Serving 38 Years for a Murder and Rape He Didn't Commit, DNA Proved His Innocence, Texas Mom Accused of Strangling Daughter, 5, Who Pleaded for Her Life During Attack, 'Sibling Rivalry' Allegedly Motivated Calif. Woman to Kill Her Sister and 3-Week-Old Niece While They Slept, A Timeline of Adnan Syed's Case After His Release from Prison and What's Next for 'Serial' Subject. The forensic pathologist who determined blunt force trauma was the cause of Mariahs death was told Lucio had confessed to child abuse. (The National Registry of Exonerations has tracked more than 350 cases of false confessions since the 1980s.) Lucios legal team has said she denied harming Mariah more than 100 times in her interrogation. In an interview with the Texas Observer, Tivon Schardl, a lawyer on Lucios appellate defense team, called her case as clear a case of injustice as youll ever see. Melissa Lucio faces imminent execution for a capital murder that never happened, Schardl said. Anne Elizabeth Roseberry: Who Is Jamie Campbell Bowers Mother. But her demeanor, they believe, can be explained by her history of trauma. Roughly half of the women reported past trauma or abuse. Lucio "ended up on death row through a horrific combination of investigative missteps and a prosecution . Her family members, the Innocence Project and the director of "The State of Texas vs. Melissa," a Hulu documentary on the case, are all campaigning for her life to be spared. The death penalty is in flux. Melissa Lucio holds her son, John, in an undated photograph. But Lucios statements bear the characteristics of a false confession, they say, citing two experts something Lucios second claim argues she was particularly prone to giving due to her history as a lifelong survivor of sexual abuse and domestic violence. I ain't perfect! These are the stories that you need to know about capital punishment's past, as well as its uncertain future. So she teamed up with Guarnera, as well as Virginia Commonwealth University criminal justice professor Hayley Cleary and University of Virginia Medical School psychiatry professor Jeffrey Aaron, to look at trauma among adolescents who had confessed to crimes. "The river is supposed to flow one way; the suspect to police.". Avoidance is one of the key trauma symptoms, said Guarnera, the researcher. A Texas woman on death row after her controversial murder conviction in her daughter's death was granted a stay of execution today, and a lower court was ordered to consider new evidence in her case, her attorneys with the Innocence Project announced. The creators identity is still unknown to the public. Your effort and contribution in providing this feedback is much Start your Independent Premium subscription today. But two days before the 53-year-old mother of 14 children was due to be executed, she was given a second chance. Executions of women are rare in the United States 17 in the last half-century, compared with more than 1,500 men but they tend to get outsized public attention and stir up debates on a variety of larger issues. At the Louisiana Correctional Institute for Women, she took a university class called Law and Feminism, and she began studying the psychology of confessions. Texas Court of Criminal Appeals granted her a stay of execution. 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