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.

The Austin airport can randomly be a headache any day of the week. But things tend to take a chaotic turn each fall thanks to back-to-back weekends of Austin City Limits Music Festival.

The annual event will take over Zilker Park in Austin, Texas, Oct. 4-6 and Oct. 11-13. ACL Fest has grown in popularity in recent years, and the event typically draws attendees from across the country — and even the world.

This means the Austin-Bergstrom International Airport (ABIA) will likely be busier than usual from Friday, Oct, 4, through Tuesday, Oct. 15, as hundreds of thousands of people flock to the Capital City for both weekends of ACL Fest.

The Austin airport also started an expansion project in April 2024. Due to the expansion, the airport will be under construction through 2026.

Translation: Flying out of Austin over the next two weeks might stress you out (more than usual) and give you a crowd-induced headache.

Whether you’re escaping the city to avoid the crowds associated with ACL Festival or are coming into town for the event, there are ways to make it in and out of the Austin airport alive with your sanity intact.

Tips for flying in and out of Austin-Bergstrom Airport during ACL Fest

Sometimes, things seem to go over better when you expect the worst. And flying in and out of the Austin airport during ACL Fest is no different.

This way, when things go smoothly, it’s a welcomed surprise. But if things go south, there’s not much to sweat and spiral over because you were expecting it anyway.

When flying into Austin, there are a few tips to follow that will help you maintain your sanity in an airport that’s far too small for the number of travelers it sees.

If you checked a bag on your way to Austin, expect a delay at baggage claim. Typically, travelers either get their bags from baggage claim within 30 minutes of their plane arriving at the gate, or they’ll have to wait over an hour.

There is no such thing as a happy medium when it comes to baggage claim at ABIA. In best best-case scenario, you get your bag without much delay. Worst case scenario, you’ll start spiraling while thinking the airline lost your suitcase due to the excessive amount of time spent waiting for it.

More often than not, your bag will arrive at baggage claim without issue — it just might take a touch longer than you’d like. This is where “expecting the worst” comes in handy.

So, pack your patience, grab a taco from one of the many local restaurants that line the main terminal at the Austin airport on your way to baggage claim, and await whatever odds the airport gods have in store for you that day.

From Friday, Oct. 4, through Tuesday, Oct. 15, the Austin airport recommends travelers who are flying out and will be using the general TSA screening lines, meaning those without TSA PreCheck or Clear, to arrive at least two and a half hours before their departure time for domestic flights, and three hours before departure for international flights.

There are three security lines at the Austin airport. Checkpoint 2 West (located between the United and American check-in counters) has security lines for those with TSA PreCheck and Clear. Security checkpoints open at 3 a.m. daily.

If you plan on checking a bag when flying out of Austin between Oct. 4 and Oct. 15, expect ticketing counters to be busy and lines to be long, especially for airlines that offer free or discounted checked luggage.

How to kill time at the Austin airport

Delays are a part of flying, and no matter how much it kills your vibe, a bad mood won’t change the fact your flight’s been delayed.

The good news is there’s a lot to do at the Austin airport. Plus, beers are cheaper there than they are at most music venues in Austin — and most drinks will be cheaper than they are at ACL Fest. That’s a win if we’ve ever heard one.

Whether you’re at the Austin-Bergstrom International Airport for a layover or are flying out after a weekend at ACL Fest, there’s surely a shop, record store, restaurant, cafe or bar calling your name.

The cool thing about the Austin airport is it aims to feature local vendors. There’s a Waterloo Records in the airport’s main terminal and a Tyler’s store, as well as local restaurants and coffee shops like Hut’s Hamburgers, The Salt Lick, Tacodeli, Jo’s Coffee, Second Bar + Kitchen, 24 Diner, Amy’s Ice Cream and The Peached Tortilla.

Some spots even let travelers take their boozy beverages to-go, allowing them to settle their preflight nerves with a drink in hand while obsessively checking the flight board at their gate.

Heck, you can even watch flights take off and land on the runway, thanks to the endless floor-to-ceiling windows that span the Austin airport.

Does this make it a little hotter than some travelers would like? Sure. But it also makes getting stuck at the Austin airport feel a touch more bearable and feel less like you’re stuck in a dungeon of travel hell.

If you want to kill time with something a little more interactive, head to the “Interimaginary Departures” setup between gates 12 and 14 (there is no gate 13 at ABIA).

This was designed by Brooklyn-based artist, Janet Zweig. You’ll see a sign with an infinity symbol and seats lined up at a seven-degree angle and a flight board with fake flights to Narnia and the Emerald City, to name a few destinations.

It’s kind of silly, but it beats being forced to listen to that one guy (you know the guy) talk on the phone at a soul-piercing volume.

Fastest way to get to rideshare pickup, rental cars at Austin airport

Wouldn’t it be great if you could grab your checked luggage, exit the Austin airport and snag a rideshare or cab from the pickup area?

In a perfect world, this would be the case. But those flying into Austin-Bergstrom International Airport should expect a bit of a trek to both the rideshare pickup and the rental car counters.

Since the airport’s expansion efforts are long overdue, space is a bit tight. Given how maddening the arrival and departure decks can be at ABIA, it’s almost like a twisted blessing in disguise that travelers must embark on a journey through multiple parking garages to reach the rental car counters and rideshare/cab pickup areas.

While you’ll see signs that say there’s a shuttle from the garage nearest the airport entrance to the garage where the rideshare pickup and rental car counters are, the shuttles — which are usually golf carts — don’t fit that many people and aren’t running as frequently as they should.

If you don’t have a checked bag, the fastest way to get to the rental car and rideshare pickup area, which are in the same garage, is by exiting through the upper level where the ticketing counters are. If not, you’ll have to wait for a painfully slow elevator in the first parking garage and take it to the second level before trekking to the actual garage where rideshare pickup and rental car check-in are located.

If you check a bag, you can always take an escalator up to the second floor and exit through the “arrival” doors. There is a designated walkway through the garages to both pickup areas. But people tend to drive a touch too aggressively in parking garages at the airport, so make sure you’re paying attention where you’re walking.

While the walk isn’t “far,” it can be annoying after a long day of travel. Plus, it’s open air, and if the weather is toasty that day, it might not be the most enjoyable trek. But, an air-conditioned rideshare or rental car awaits you at the end of your journey, and all the airport annoyances will soon melt away.

You can view a map here for help navigating to the rideshare pickup area at the Austin airport.

AUSTIN, Texas — In late September, the Texas Maternal Mortality and Morbidity Committee requested information on the number of abortion-related deaths in the state. The data has been kept from the group for more than a decade.

“We can’t make comments about what caused an increase in maternal death in our state if we’re not really reviewing all of them,” said Dr. Carla Ortique, chair of the committee.

The request follows the panel’s latest report, which shows that in 2020 the maternal mortality rate was 27.7 deaths per 100,000 live births—compared to 17.2 in 2019. The data predates the state’s near total abortion ban, which is expected to increase maternal mortality. 

“Each maternal death, each life that is lost, has value,” said Ortique. 

Health care providers say the context from the number of abortion-related deaths could save lives. 

“Get down to the root of some of our problems and to really figure out how can we make a positive change,” said Dr. Todd Ivey, a Houston OB-GYN and district chair of the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists 

Legislators would need to change state law to allow the committee to view the data. There isn’t expected to be pushback, but Austin-area Democratic state Rep. Donna Howard thinks abortion-related terms should be redefined in state law to better understand the mortality and morbidity patterns. 

Current state law does not consider the removal of an ectopic pregnancy as an abortion, but medically, it is. 

“So part of what we should be doing is being consistent with medical science and what medical definitions are, and not playing games politically,” said Howard. 

Anti-abortion advocates support the committee’s request for the data, but say that definitions don’t need to change. 

“Because when we gather this data, we want to understand the true deaths in the state of Texas that are occurring because of abortion,” said Amy O’Donnell with Texas Alliance for Life.

Ivey says more education is needed for policymakers to understand why an abortion is necessary to treat ectopic pregnancy. He added that clarity to the state’s law that only allows for abortions in the case of an emergency would help address mortality and morbidity rates. 

“People are very confused and people are very frightened exactly what they can and cannot do,” said Ivey.

The Texas Medical Board recently adopted new rules that protect doctors who perform abortions for ectopic pregnancies, but many doctors want more clarity.