Unethical Executions in October - Pt. 2: Credible Innocence Claims
A follow up to my previous execution petition round-up, here are the promised cases of four people who have always maintained their innocence, and have brought some very valid concerns with their convictions.
First is Lance Shockley, who is scheduled to be killed by Missouri's government on October 14th. Shockley was convicted of the murder of a police officer in 2005. He was a suspect because the officer was in charge of an investigation into a drunk driving accident Shockley was involved in. Problems with his conviction are:
Potentially rushed investigation: Officer deaths are infamous for leading to aggressively rushed and poorly-thought-out investigations. And despite loose evidence and other potential leads, the police narrowed in on Shockley quickly. The only evidence linking Lance to the crime was eyewitness testimony saying they saw him driving his car near the crime scene around the time of the murder. No physical evidence is present, no murder weapon was ever found, and requests for more modern DNA testing on evidence have been denied.
Juror Misconduct: The jury foreperson for his trial was discovered - after the guilty verdict had already been reached - to have written a book about a man seeking revenge against a drunk driver who had escaped justice. The juror shared this book with other members of the jury and even some court officers during the trial, despite instructions for jurors avoid media centered around criminal justice. I probably don't have to explain how, given the context, this book being on the forefront of their minds could have led to bias among the jury.
Ineffective Assistance of Counsel: Shockley's lawyers, upon finding out about the jury misconduct, failed to back up their mistrial motion with any evidence despite having the ability to interview the jurors and bolster their claim. Many experts believe a mistrial would've been fully justified, and the seeming lack of interest in this issue from his attorneys is unusual.
Lack of Jury Consensus: During the sentencing phase - a part of capital case trials where the jury decides whether prison or a death sentence should be imposed - the jury was split. All 12 did not agree a death sentence. In almost every other state, this would take execution off the table, but not in Missouri. In Missouri, when a jury in hung over sentencing, the decision goes to the judge. This rule is highly criticized as adding a layer of arbitrariness to death sentences, as it depends more on what judge you get rather than on the prosecutions ability to convince 12 people you deserve to die.
Rehabilitation: Lance, until his execution was scheduled, was president of the Restorative Justice Organization at Potosi Correctional Center, a member of the Inmate Peer Support program, and a representative and minister with Christians at Potosi. If Missouri really cares about rehabilitation over punishment, why murder a man who has dedicated his time self-improvement and helping others? Regardless of his past, innocent or guilty, the man his is now is a pillar of his community. An especially impressive feat given the unforgiving conditions of death row.
The real kicker here is that Shockley isn't asking to be freed; he's just asking for a commuted sentence from death to life so he can continue his work supporting other incarcerated people and continue campaigning for proper DNA testing. You can take action here:
https://www.istandwithlance.com/petition
https://actionnetwork.org/petitions/stop-the-execution-of-lance-shockley-in-missouri
https://madp.salsalabs.org/ClemencyforLanceShockley/index.html?eType=EmailBlastContent&eId=7d63b500-48f1-4ea3-ace6-b374ae01d633
You can send an email/letter using Amnesty International's model:
https://www.amnestyusa.org/press-releases/missouri-governor-kehoe-must-commute-lance-shockleys-death-sentence/
https://www.amnesty.org/en/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/AMR5102762025ENGLISH.pdf
Next up is Charles Crawford. The main issue with his case was his trail attorney, who conceded Crawford's guilt during the trail (in order to pursue an insanity defense) against the express wishes of his client. This was a violation of Crawford's rights.
https://actionnetwork.org/petitions/stop-the-execution-of-charles-crawford-in-mississippi/
This is the only one I could find unfortunately.
Next up is Robert Roberson, who was convicted of murdering his four month old daughter 20 years ago. The issues with the case?
Discredited "Shaken Baby Syndrome Triad": Roberson's conviction was based on a medical hypothesis that stated a trifecta of certain injuries in a baby - brain swelling, brain bleeding, and bleeding behind the retinas - can only be caused by a baby being violently shaken, which is a form of child abuse. Subsequent research has shown this is NOT the case. While shaking certainly can cause those injuries, other things like genetic conditions, chronic diseases, and short-but-unlucky falls can too. Roberson's daughter, Nikki, had an extensive medical history even at her young age that included breathing problems, repeated infections, and the prescription of heavy-duty medications with serious side-effects. She also had, according to Robert, fallen out of her bed the night before but initially showed no signs of injury. But the jury only heard, from both the prosecution and defense, that Shaken Baby Syndrome was the only possible cause of Nikki's injuries.
Nikki Didn't Die of a Brain Injury: In a later investigation launched by Robert's defense, a team of experienced medical experts determined that Nikki's various infections had developed into two different types of pneumonia, which were in turn exacerbated by the side-effects of a medication she was on, and that these formed the true cause of her death. Her CAT scans showed only a single hit to her head, which is inconsistent with SBS but does line up with Robert's account of events. They also noted that her symptoms were consistent with an undiagonosed bleeding disorder, which could explain why a single bump to the head caused such severe bleeding.
Robert's Autism: The only other evidence used to support the prosecution's charge of child abuse was the hospital staff's observations that Robert appeared indifferent to his daughter's condition and struggled to explain what happened to her (which staff took as a sign he was lying). However, Robert is diagnosed with autism which, as i'm sure many of you know, can result in 'unusual' body language, aversion to eye contact, and difficulty expressing emotions or navigating social situations. He didn't seem indifferent because he WAS indifferent, he seemed indifferent because he was not expressing his distress in a the way a neurotypical person would. This kind of snap judgement based on a stranger's perception of his body language isn't evidence of a crime.
Widespread Support: Robert Roberson's case has been taken up by the Innocence project. The case for his innocence is so compelling that they reconsidered their usual requirement for DNA exoneration in order to champion it. He also has the support of a bi-partisan group of Texas law makers, who intervened to prevent his execution last year.
You can take action here:
https://actionnetwork.org/petitions/stop-the-execution-of-robert-roberson-in-texas/
https://innocenceproject.org/petitions/justice-for-robert-roberson/
https://actionnetwork.org/petitions/stop-the-execution-of-robert-roberson-an-innocent-man-on-texas-death-row/
https://www.thepetitionsite.com/takeaction/539/536/292/
People living in Texas can send an email here:
https://www.votervoice.net/AutismSociety/Campaigns/130305/Respond
and others can follow the instructions at the first link.
Finally, there is Anthony Boyd, scheduled to be executed on October 23 in Alabama. The main concerns are:
Ineffective assistance of counsel: During his trial, Boyd had an attorney with only a few months of experience and a month of prep time, far too little for someone in charge of a capital murder case. The lawyer failed to interview the state's witness prior to the trial, making it impossible to cross-examine them effectively when they were on the stand. Without a good cross-examination, no potential inaccuracies, biases, or mistakes could be questioned or brought to the attention of the jury.
Positive impact from behind bars: Boyd serves as the chairman of Project Hope to Abolish The Death Penalty's inmate-run branch and has a had a great record of behavior in the 20+ years he's been imprisoned.
Bad execution method: Alabama has a terrible record with botched executions and struggles to get it's hands on lethal injection drugs. Instead of reconsidering death sentences or examining their execution processes, Alabama had switched to using nitrogen suffocation to kill it's people. This method has been banned for use in animal euthanasia because it is considered inhumane. Suffocation is a pretty slow and painful way to die, and it will likely be worse for Boyd, who has asthma.
You can take action here:
https://actionnetwork.org/petitions/stop-the-execution-of-anthony-boyd-in-alabama/
https://nodeathpenalty.santegidio.org/en/appeals/133693/
https://www.change.org/p/free-anthony-boyd-from-death-row?signed=true
You can contact the governor of Alabama using these instructions:
https://www.phadp.org/execution-alert-8/
You can also find automatic letter templates for these a few other executions here:
https://catholicsmobilizing.org/our-work/death-penalty/executions/
(I'm not a big of fan of this organization, ending the death penalty is like the only thing i agree with with them on, but i figured these might be helpful for some of you regardless).
Speaking of alabama, you can also sign this petition to make their repeal of judicial override powers retroactive; saving people who, had their trials happened today, would not be on death row.
Commute Twenty-nine Alabama Death Sentences
