Texas stays execution following suspicion of police set-up

Austin, Feb 24 (IANS/EFE) The Texas Court of Criminal Appeals has stayed the execution of convicted murderer Rodney Reed scheduled for March 5 following suspicion of a police set-up during the investigation into the crime.

The court agreed Monday to give time to Reed's defence to come up with fresh proof which could eventually prove him innocent of the crime.

Defence attorney Bryce Benjet seemed extremely relieved by the decision and claimed that DNA tests could prove who committed the crime.

Reed, 47, an African-American, was found guilty of murdering Stacey Stites, 19, after allegedly raping her.

The sentence was based on traces of semen found in her body and the testimonies of forensic experts.

Reed, who initially denied knowing Stites, confessed during the trial to having had a secret affair with her, as she was engaged to a police officer with whom she lived.

At his trial, the accused pleaded not guilty to the charge but the jury was not convinced.

Now, all eyes are on Stites' former fiance Jimmy Fennel, who was expelled from the police force and is serving a 10-year sentence for sexually assaulting a woman in his custody in 2008.

In addition, Reed's lawyer has also brought to light Fennel's violence-laden police career, citing several episodes that were deliberately hidden during the trial.

The defence seeks to prove that Fennel killed Stites on the night of April 22, 1996, in his home and then moved the body, with the help of an accomplice, and left it about 35 km from the crime scene.

It also claims that Fennel knew about the affair between Stites and Reed, as he had earlier warned Reed on the street that he would pay for it.

Along with the defence attorney, several members of Stites' family also believe Reed to be innocent, including Judy Mitchell, her cousin.

--IANS/EFE

ab/dg