Rodney Reed; (1): Death Row; Texas; On-going hearing; Bulletin: Reporter David Barer; October 9, 2017; KXAN..." During Reed’s trial, prosecutors said Stites she was on her way to work when Reed abducted, raped and dumped her the side of a rural road near Lake Bastrop. Reed’s DNA matched a sample taken from Stites. Reed said the couple had a clandestine sexual relationship, which would explain the presence of the DNA. Reed’s defense previously brought in independent forensic investigators to review Stites’ autopsy. The experts called into question the time of death estimate used by the prosecution at trial and said Stites could have been killed hours earlier and moved to the spot she was found. The latest Bastrop County hearings will take place over four days, from Oct. 10-13. KXAN will be at the hearings to provide the latest developments in the case."

"Death row inmate Rodney Reed, who has maintained his innocence in the killing of Stacey Stites, is heading back to Bastrop District Court for a hearing this week that could alter the trajectory of his decades-long legal battle. Reed’s defense team says it will show new evidence that points to Jimmy Fennell, 44, Stites’ fiancé at the time of her death, as the real killer. In this writ of habeas corpus hearing, Reed’s defense team says it will present evidence that Fennell gave conflicting accounts of his whereabouts the night and morning Stites disappeared and was killed. Fennell told investigators he was in his Giddings apartment sleeping when Stites left for her early morning shift at a Bastrop grocery store on April 23, 1996. However, Fennell told his friend, Bastrop County Sheriff’s Deputy Curtis Davis, that he had been out drinking and came home late the night of Stites’ disappearance, according to Reed’s attorneys. Fennell could testify at this week’s hearing. He was served with a bench warrant last week, according to a Texas Department of Criminal Justice spokesman. Fennell is currently serving a 10-year prison sentence for kidnapping and improper relations with a person in custody. A woman accused Fennell of raping her in 2007, while she was in his custody. He was a Georgetown police officer at the time. He took a plea deal, and the charges were reduced. He is expected to be released from prison in 2018. In March of 2017, Fennell was denied parole because his record indicates his original offenses indicated a “conscious disregard for the lives, safety or property of others, such that the offender poses a continuing threat to public safety,” according to TDCJ records. The state was just days from executing Reed in 2015, before the State Court of Criminal Appeals postponed it. His execution date has remained open. During Reed’s trial, prosecutors said Stites she was on her way to work when Reed abducted, raped and dumped her the side of a rural road near Lake Bastrop. Reed’s DNA matched a sample taken from Stites. Reed said the couple had a clandestine sexual relationship, which would explain the presence of the DNA. Reed’s defense previously brought in independent forensic investigators to review Stites’ autopsy. The experts called into question the time of death estimate used by the prosecution at trial and said Stites could have been killed hours earlier and moved to the spot she was found. The latest Bastrop County hearings will take place over four days, from Oct. 10-13. KXAN will be at the hearings to provide the latest developments in the case."

http://kxan.com/2017/10/09/rodney-reed-heads-to-bastrop-for-pivotal-hearing/

 

PUBLISHER'S NOTE: I am monitoring this case/issue. Keep your eye on the Charles Smith Blog for reports on developments. The Toronto Star, my previous employer for more than twenty incredible years, has put considerable effort into exposing the harm caused by Dr. Charles Smith and his protectors - and into pushing for reform of Ontario's forensic pediatric pathology system. The Star has a "topic" section which focuses on recent stories related to Dr. Charles Smith. It can be found at: http://www.thestar.com/topic/charlessmith. Information on "The Charles Smith Blog Award"- and its nomination process - can be found at: http://smithforensic.blogspot.com/2011/05/charles-smith-blog-award-nominations.html Please send any comments or information on other cases and issues of interest to the readers of this blog to: hlevy15@gmail.com. Harold Levy; Publisher; The Charles Smith Blog;