Supreme Court refuses to hear Texas killer's case

The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday refused to hear the case of Texas killer Henry Skinner (pictured), sentenced to die March 24 for the bludgeoning death of his live-in girlfriend and the fatal stabbings of her two adult sons.

The Pampa case has generated national furor in anti-death penalty circles after an investigation by student journalists from Chicago's Northwestern University uncovered evidence they believe suggests Skinner may be innocent.

Skinner, 47, was convicted for the 1993 New Year's Eve deaths of Twila Busby, 41, and her sons, Elwin Caler, 22, and Randy Busby, 20. Twila Busby was strangled and beaten on the head at least 14 times, probably with an ax handle.

The court declined the case without comment.

Skinner's petition asked the judges to review the manner in which the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit analyzed his claim of insufficient counsel. It also sought review of the court's ruling knocking down Skinner's claim that his lawyers failed to adequately investigate another possible suspect in the case.

Pending before the high court is a second petition asking that unanalyzed crime scene evidence be subjected to DNA testing.

Skinner's lead attorney, Robert Owen of the University of Texas' Capital Punishment Center, said the condemned man's hope now rests on the DNA issue and a new appeal filed Monday in state court. In Pampa, Gray County District Attorney Lynn Switzer could not be reached for comment.

Source: Houston Chronicle, March 1, 2010