Austin, TX
A Texas execution is renewing calls for clemency. It’s rarely granted
AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — A Texas man set to die this month is at the center of another push for clemency in the U.S., this time backed by several GOP lawmakers and bestselling author John Grisham, who say a father’s 2002 conviction for killing his infant daughter deserves a second look.
Their pleas to spare Robert Roberson, who is set to die by lethal injection on Oct. 17, comes after Missouri and Oklahoma carried out executions last month over calls to grant two condemned men lesser punishments, underlining how rare clemency remains for death row prisoners.
The cases highlight one of a governor’s most extraordinary powers — whether to allow an execution to proceed. In Texas, the state’s parole board and Republican Gov. Greg Abbott have yet to weigh in on Roberson, whose defenders say was convicted based on faulty scientific evidence.
In Missouri, the execution of Marcellus Williams on Sept. 24 reignited calls for transparency in the decision-making process after a prosecutor and the victim’s family had urged Republican Gov. Mike Parson to reduce the sentence. Parson said multiple courts had not found merit in Williams’ innocence claims.
“Capital punishment cases are some of the hardest issues we have to address in the Governor’s Office, but when it comes down to it, I follow the law and trust the integrity of our judicial system,” Parson said in a statement before Williams’ execution.
Clemency is the process that allows a governor, president or independent board to lessen the sentence of a person convicted of a crime. In most states, a state board recommends clemency to the governor before it can be approved.
Clemencies are usually a last push by defendants on death row to have their sentence reduced after all other efforts in the judicial system have failed.
Historically, grants for clemency are rare. Aside from a few mass orders from governors to commute all death sentences in their state, less than two have been granted on average per year since then, according to the Death Penalty Information Center.
Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt rejected a recommendation from the state’s parole board to spare the life of Emmanuel Littlejohn life before he was executed. In a 3-2 vote, the board appeared convinced by Littlejohn’s attorneys, who questioned if he or a co-defendant were responsible for a 1992 killing of a store owner.
Stitt — who has granted clemency just once out of the five times the board has recommended it during his nearly six years in office — said in a statement that he did not want to overturn a jury’s decision to execute Littlejohn “as a law and order governor.”
In Missouri, Williams’ execution followed public outcry from the victim’s family and prosecutor last month in a historic week of five executions in a seven-day span.
It’s unclear if Missouri’s Parole Board, which makes confidential recommendations to the governor on clemency requests, advocated for Williams’ execution. Williams’ defense attorneys said those records should be public.
“Transparency is a hallmark of Democracy, and it is woefully missing here,” they said in a statement.
Governors are usually balancing a few things when deciding to commute a sentence, including the severity of a crime or if they’re remorseful, according to Arizona State University law professor Dale Baich, an attorney who has represented people facing execution.
But Baich also suspects other factors can come into play. “I think it all comes down to politics,” Baich said.
Eighty-six state representatives — as well as medical experts, death penalty attorneys, a former detective on the case and Grisham — are supporting Roberson because they believe his conviction was based on faulty scientific evidence.
Roberson was sentenced to death for killing his 2-year-old daughter, Nikki Curtis, in 2002. Prosecutors claimed he violently shook her to death from what’s known as shaken baby syndrome. In a letter sent to the board last month, medical professionals claimed that Curtis’ injuries aligned with pneumonia and not shaken baby syndrome.
Prosecutors have claimed that the science of shaken baby syndrome has not changed significantly since Roberson’s conviction and that the evidence against him still holds.
“We want our justice system to work. And I think Texans deserve to know that if a man is going to be executed, that it is right and he is guilty,” state Rep. Lacey Hull, a Republican from Houston who is one of 30 GOP state representatives to support clemency for Roberson, said last week after she and other lawmakers visited Roberson in prison. “And if there’s even a shadow of a doubt that he is innocent, we should not be executing him.”
Some Republicans view Roberson’s case as a parental rights issue about the safeguards that need to be put in place to prevent parents from being falsely accused of child abuse.
Abbott can only grant clemency after receiving a recommendation from the the Texas Board of Pardons and Parole. He has commuted a death sentence only once in nearly a decade as governor.
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Ballentine reported from Jefferson City, Missouri. Associated Press writer Juan A. Lozano in Houston contributed to this report.
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Lathan is a corps member for the Associated Press/Report for America Statehouse News Initiative. Report for America is a nonprofit national service program that places journalists in local newsrooms to report on undercovered issues.
AUSTIN, Texas — Texas is expanding its response to severe flooding as state leaders warn another round of heavy rain could bring more dangerous conditions to parts of Central and South Texas.
During a Thursday briefing at the State Operations Center, Gov. Greg Abbott said protecting lives remains the state’s top priority as life-threatening flooding continues.
“Once again, life-threatening catastrophic flooding remains our main risk tonight and overnight through the early morning hours,” Abbott said.
Abbott said 59 counties remain under a flood watch, with Uvalde and Johnson City among the communities facing the greatest risk over the next 24 hours. He also warned that record river levels are expected in several locations, including along the Nueces River near Uvalde.
The state has expanded its emergency response since Wednesday, with about 2,350 emergency responders now deployed along with more than 1,400 vehicles and pieces of equipment, including more than 85 boats, 21 aircraft, and more than 200 high-profile vehicles.
Abbott said those crews have completed more than 230 water rescues.
RELATED| Two deaths reported in Texas Hill Country floods, Abbott confirms
KEYE
Chief Nim Kidd, who leads the Texas Division of Emergency Management, said National Weather Service meteorologists are forecasting more rain over already saturated areas.
“Meteorologists from the National Weather Service tell us an additional 10 to 15 inches of rain is possible over already wet areas,” Kidd said.
Kidd said some communities in the Uvalde area remain cut off because of flooding. The state has half a million meals ready to eat and one million bottles of water prepared for delivery by high-profile vehicles or military aircraft.
The Texas Department of Transportation said 125 roadway sections across the state had been impacted by floodwaters as of Thursday afternoon, with 87 remaining closed. Officials warned that even after floodwaters recede, roads and bridges may still be unsafe because of hidden damage.
Abbott also confirmed two flood-related deaths. One victim was a man who was swept away in an RV near Comfort. The second was a 75-year-old man who was swept away while driving in Uvalde.
During the briefing, CBS Austin asked the governor when the state’s focus would begin shifting from rescue operations to recovery.
“The most important thing we can do right now during the immediacy of all the rain coming down is doing everything we can to protect human life,” Abbott said. “But that said people can begin the process maybe as early as tomorrow to go through damage assessment.”
Abbott urged Texans to continue avoiding flooded roadways as the threat continues.
“Together, all of us Texans can be diligent over the next 24 hours to make sure we avoid rising water or heading into water on roadways,” he said.
Austin, TX
More dangerous Texas floods expected after at least 2 killed and hundreds of people rescued in high water, governor says – WTOP News
AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — More dangerous Texas floods expected after at least 2 killed and hundreds of people rescued in…
AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — More dangerous Texas floods expected after at least 2 killed and hundreds of people rescued in high water, governor says.
Copyright
© 2026 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, written or redistributed.
KERRVILLE, Texas (KXAN) — The City of Kerrville issued a shelter-in-place Thursday morning, with heavy rain causing reported evacuations early Thursday morning. A Flash Flood Warning is currently in place for Kerr County as the Guadalupe River continues to rise.
Around 5:30 a.m., the National Weather Service said a “large and deadly flood wave is moving down” the Guadalupe River.
KXAN First Warning Weather Meteorologist Kristen Currie said approximately 11 inches of rain have fallen northwest of Kerr County since 10 p.m. on Wednesday. The Guadalupe River is expected to reach major flood stage in multiple areas.
Kerr County PIO Lisa Walter said “there have been multiple swift water rescues and evacuations.” Officials emphasized not to drive through flooded streets and to turn around if water covers the roadway.
Evacuations were underway in multiple areas, according to the county, including:
- Goat Creek
- Arcadia Loop
- Lowery/Guadalupe area
- Junction Highway low-water crossings
- Other low-lying neighborhoods
Emergency shelters are open at Impact Church (Goat Creek evacuation point), Calvary Temple Church and City West Church for people in West Kerr County, the county said.
Here are the latest headlines:
Live updates
7:03 a.m.: KXAN’s Kevin Baskar is in Gillespie County providing updates on the latest flood conditions in the area. Watch his update below.
6:37 a.m.: Kerr County officials emphasized not to drive through flooded streets and to turn around if water covers the roadway.
Evacuations were underway in multiple areas, according to the county, including:
- Goat Creek
- Arcadia Loop
- Lowery/Guadalupe area
- Junction Highway low-water crossings
- Other low-lying neighborhoods
Emergency shelters are open at Impact Church (Goat Creek evacuation point), Calvary Temple Church and City West Church for people in West Kerr County, the county said.
6:27 a.m.: Video shows emergency crews hauling boats and rescue equipment through Kerrville.
6:15 a.m. NewsNation correspondent Xavier Walton and his photographer captured a structure being swept up in river water and crashing into a Kerrville bridge. The structure appears to be some sort of shipping container, pushing against the bridge.
Watch the video below:
6:08 a.m.: Kerr County PIO Lisa Walter confirms “there have been multiple swift water rescues and evacuations.”
6:02 a.m.: The Guadalupe River at Center Point is expected to crest at 35 feet, which is the same crest as July 4, 2025.
5:57 a.m.: The National Weather Service said “a large deadly flood wave” is moving down the Guadalupe River.
5:49 a.m.: The Comfort Volunteer Fire Department said it has units in Kerrville and Centerpoint alerting people along the Guadalupe River. They’re helping Kerr County with evacuations along Highway 27 between Comfort and Centerpoint. They said all VFD personnel are OK.
5:30 a.m.: The Kerr County Sheriff’s Office said in a Facebook post that it’s received reports of “street flooding in Ingram, and it’s likely many roads and city streets are flooded as well.”
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