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Speaker 1: Dear listener, we have a very big and actually a

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Speaker 1: very happy update on one of our recent stories. Melissa Lucio,

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Speaker 1: the first Latina on death row in Texas and whose

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Speaker 1: execution was scheduled for April twenty seventh, has been given

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Speaker 1: a new opportunity to prove the innocence she's so long claimed.

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Speaker 1: Here's Melissa two days before her death sentence as she

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Speaker 1: takes a call from Republican Texas state Representative Jeff Leach.

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Speaker 2: Hello, Melissa is Hey, this is Jeff Leach. Yes, sir,

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Speaker 2: How are you today?

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Speaker 3: I'm doing fine.

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Speaker 4: How are you good?

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Speaker 2: Have you heard the news?

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Speaker 3: No?

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Speaker 2: What you haven't heard the news yet?

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Speaker 3: No? What happened?

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Speaker 2: The Quarter Criminal Appeals issue a stay of your execution

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Speaker 2: for Wednesday. We just got worried about fifteen minutes ago.

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Speaker 2: Oh my god.

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Speaker 1: Back in two thousand and eight, Melissa was convicted of

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Speaker 1: capital murder for the death of her two year old daughter,

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Speaker 1: Mariah Elizabeth Alvarez. Melissa has maintained her innocence since then

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Speaker 1: and has always claimed that Mariah's death was actually the

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Speaker 1: result of an accidental fall down the stairs. For the

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Speaker 1: past fourteen years, Melissa's family and supporters have been raising

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Speaker 1: concerns about the fairness of Melissa's trial, along with other

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Speaker 1: questions about the case that have popped up along the way.

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Speaker 1: Jeff Leach is also co chair of the Texas House

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Speaker 1: Criminal Justice Reform Caucus. He had more than half of

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Speaker 1: the Texas House of Representatives had recently been working to

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Speaker 1: try to halt Melissa's execution.

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Speaker 2: It appears that you're going to get a new trial

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Speaker 2: at the very least.

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Speaker 4: They Oh my, that is a wonderful.

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Speaker 2: This isn't This isn't the end, and we're going to

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Speaker 2: continue to work together to make sure that the right

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Speaker 2: thing is done and that hopefully ultimately you're free.

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Speaker 4: That's the goal.

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Speaker 3: Thank you, Thank you so much.

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Speaker 1: Well. The stay of Melissa's execution is a huge victory.

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Speaker 1: The battle to save Melissa isn't over yet. Her legal

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Speaker 1: team held a news conference shortly after this decision came out.

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Speaker 1: Here's Vanessa Potkins. She's director of Special Litigation at the

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Speaker 1: Innocence Project.

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Speaker 5: The court stay sends Melissa's case back to the trial

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Speaker 5: court so that her claims can be heard. Her claim

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Speaker 5: of innocence, her claim that the state used false evidence

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Speaker 5: to obtain her conviction, and her claim that the state

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Speaker 5: hid from her defense attorney's favorable evidence at her trial.

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Speaker 1: In the days leading up to Melissa's scheduled execution, five

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Speaker 1: of the original jurors in her case express concerns about

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Speaker 1: evidence they say was withheld during Melissa's capital trial. Those

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Speaker 1: jurors also said they would support a new trial from Melissa.

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Speaker 1: There's also been a groundswell of support from people across

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Speaker 1: the country as Melissa's case has gained national attention.

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Speaker 3: This is the first time that a court will be

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Speaker 3: hearing the new evidence of Melissa's innocence and the evidence

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Speaker 3: that false testimony was used to obtain her conviction fourteen

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Speaker 3: years ago.

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Speaker 1: Tivon Shardle, who is also part of Melissa's legal team,

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Speaker 1: explained at the news conference what will happen next.

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Speaker 4: The case will go back to the trial court in Brownsville, Texas,

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Speaker 4: and there will be proceedings on a hearing, as Vanessa

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Speaker 4: was saying, to hear the evidence of Melissa's innocence, and

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Speaker 4: that court will then make a recommendation to the Court

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Speaker 4: of Criminal Appeals, who will ultimately will decide whether Melissa

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Speaker 4: should get trial.

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Speaker 1: Melissa's family, especially her son John Vincent, Lucio have said

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Speaker 1: that they're extremely grateful for the stay in their mom's

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Speaker 1: scheduled execution. John learned about the news when he got

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Speaker 1: a call in the middle of doing an interview alongside

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Speaker 1: his wife for the Spanish language television network Union.

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Speaker 4: Gotta Stay.

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Speaker 1: Melissa and her family have said that they will continue

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Speaker 1: to fight we hear. Latino USA will keep following this

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Speaker 1: story as it develops. If you want to learn more

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Speaker 1: about Melissa's case and original trial, listen to The Race

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Speaker 1: to Save Melissa Lucio on latinousa dot org or find

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Speaker 1: it on your podcast feed. Thank you, and as always,