Rodney Reed's mother speaks out after stay of execution
A rally was held Sunday in support of Rodney Reed, the Texas death row inmate who was granted a stay of execution Friday. Reed has been in prison for over 20 years after being convicted of the 1996 murder of Stacey Stites. Originally scheduled to be executed November 20, Reed was granted an indefinite stay, but his supporters realize the fight isn't over.
Sunday's rally took place at the governor's mansion in Austin, Texas. The rally was part celebration and part demand for Reed's freedom. While the execution has been halted for now, Reed's conviction has not been overturned. The case appears to be headed back to court thanks to newly-uncovered evidence.
"I am so happy. I am one one happy, happy mother," Sandra Reed, Reed's mother, told CBS affiliate KEYE-TV on Saturday.
"We had witnesses that were intimidated, but now it's a new day. Twenty years or more have passed and things are changing, and I think this case will bring about a change," Sandra added. "The truth will and shall set him free."
Among the group of supporters Sunday, there was a banner that read, "Free Rodney Reed." Those in attendance ended the rally with an identical chant, adding "now" at the end each time the phrase was repeated. In attendance were Reed's brother, Rodrick, and sister-in-law Wana Akpin.
The Innocence Project, an organization that looks to overturn wrongful convictions that is acting as Reed's legal team, filed an appeal Monday, claiming that the state suppressed evidence and relied on false witness testimony in the original trial. The appeal also cited new witness testimony that implicates Stites' ex-fiance in her murder.