AUSTIN, Texas (AP) - A federal appeals court has granted a Texas death row inmate’s request for a review of his mental competence to be executed.
Scott Panetti had been set for execution in December 2014. But it was put on hold after his attorneys sought a delay so Panetti could undergo new competency examinations.
By a 2-1 vote, a 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals panel on Tuesday returned the case to a federal judge in Austin to conduct additional proceedings to determine competency.
Panetti has a long history of schizophrenia. At his trial, Panetti, who served as his own attorney, tried to subpoena Jesus Christ as a witness.
Panetti was sentenced to death for the 1992 shooting deaths of his in-laws at their home in Fredericksburg in the Texas Hill Country.
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