Robert Roberson

The Texas Court of Criminal Appeals has blocked the execution of Robert Roberson a week before it was scheduled to occur.

The case is attracting attention from across the nation, even among supporters of capital punishment, who are calling for a halt to Roberson's execution.

The latest calls to stave off the politically charged execution come after a summer where GOP leaders asked the state courts to kick Democrats out of office and throw Beto O’Rourke in jail.

The Autism Society of Texas and the Autism Society of America have issued an open letter urging Texas officials to stop the scheduled October 16 execution of Robert Roberson, a man with autism who was sentenced to death in 2003 for the death of his 2-year-old daughter, Nikki.

Roberson, convicted of capital murder in 2003 for the death of his 2-year-old daughter, will continue to push for a new trial. He has maintained his innocence.

The state of Texas is again trying to execute Robert Roberson, a man diagnosed with autism who was convicted of the murder of his two-year-old daughter, Nikki. They claim her death was caused by shaken baby syndrome. But there is mounting evidence that she died of an illness and not from child abuse.

After a roughly 20-minute hearing, Judge Austin Reeve Jackson rejected arguments by Roberson's attorney that his execution should be further delayed because of a pending appeal to the state's highest criminal court.

A court hearing on Wednesday will determine whether to proceed with Paxton’s request.

The Texas Attorney General's office has taken over the Roberson case from the Anderson County District Attorney and has requested Roberson be immediately added to the death row calendar.

Attorney General Ken Paxton sought to delay legal proceedings until Jan. 13 — the day before the committee disbands — even as lawmakers vowed to continue fighting to hear from Roberson.

The new subpoena comes after lawmakers say Ken Paxton’s office stalled a previous effort to get Roberson’s legislative testimony about his conviction in 'shaken baby' case.

The Criminal Jurisprudence Committee plans to issue a new subpoena to the death row inmate for a Dec. 20 hearing if Attorney General Ken Paxton’s office does not cooperate.