The U.S. Supreme Court has declined to hear a petition from a Tarrant County man on death row asking for a new punishment hearing after allegations that prosecutors lied during his trial.
Paul David Storey, 40, has been on death row since 2008. He was one of two men convicted of capital murder after killing mini golf course manager Jonas Cherry during a robbery two years prior. The other man, Mark Porter, pleaded guilty and got life in prison.
During Storey's trial, then-prosecutor Christy Jack told the jury Cherry's family wanted the death penalty for Storey — but his family denied ever wanting Storey to die for the crime.
In 2022, former Tarrant County District Attorney Sharen Wilson told the state’s highest criminal court Jack and co-prosecutor Robert Foran lied to the jury, and that Storey deserved a new punishment trial. Both have denied wrongdoing.
But in December, Wilson's successor — DA Phil Sorrells — walked back that office's support for Storey, asking the court to reject his appeal. In his brief, Sorrels said Storey has received due process and cited the Supreme Court's previous refusal to hear his case in 2022.
The latest petition, filed in October, was denied last week. Storey's attorney's had argued that the state confessed to wrongdoing and prosecutors’ attempts to make it right should be taken seriously. Mike Ware, an attorney for Storey, said they were exploring their options for next steps but declined to comment further.
Storey's initial execution date was set for April 2017 but the court granted a stay of execution to investigate whether the prosecution violated due process. The latest decision clears the way for his death, but it was not clear if or when the execution would be rescheduled.
Storey previously asked the U.S. Supreme Court to review his case in 2022, but that petition was also denied. Nonetheless, Justice Sonia Sotomayor wrote Storey's case was problematic.
"Prosecutors not only failed to disclose Cherry’s parents’ unwavering desire that Storey not be sentenced to death, but also misled the jury in summation to successfully secure a death sentence," she said.
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