BASTROP, Texas – The case of a man who claims he is not guilty of a 1996 homicide is getting another setback.
On Monday, Judge Doug Shaver submitted filings to the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals recommending that Rodney Reed's grounds for relief be denied.
Reed was convicted of capital murder and sentenced to death in 1998 despite numerous protests over two decades claiming his innocence. According to Reed, the 19-year-old victim, Stacey Stites’ fiancé, Jimmy Fennell, is guilty of the crime.
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Along with his attorneys, Reed argued that a new trial should be granted on the grounds of newly discovered evidence, citing a 2016 CNN interview that suggests a different timeline of Fennell's whereabouts on the night of the homicide.
Last May, the Court of Criminal Appeals called for a hearing to present that new evidence, which took place in October.
Shaver's recommendation is only advisory, which means Reed's fate is once again in the hands of the Court of Criminal Appeals. The court will make the ultimate decision.
“We are gonna stand on faith like we have from day one. And even if, God forbid, we don’t get this, we will not lay down, we will not surrender, we will not give up,” said Rodrick Reed, Rodney Reed’s brother.