Texas death row inmate gets reprieve

Headline Legal News

The U.S. Supreme Court blocked the first scheduled execution of a Texas death row inmate using a new drug cocktail on Tuesday, although the proposed lethal mix was not mentioned in the court's decision to reconsider the merits of the condemned man's appeal.

Cleve Foster was to have been executed hours later for the 2002 slaying of a Sudanese woman in Fort Worth — the first Texas execution since the state switched to pentobarbital in its three-drug mixture. The sedative has already been used for executions in Oklahoma and Ohio.

On Tuesday morning, the high court agreed to reconsider its January order denying Foster's appeal that raised claims of innocence and poor legal help during his trial and early stages of his appeals.

Foster's lawyers also have argued that Texas prison officials violated administrative procedures last month when they announced the switch to pentobarbital from sodium thiopental, which is in short supply nationwide. Foster's lawyers contend that the rules change in Texas required more time for public comment and review. Lower courts have rejected their appeals and attorneys had planned to take their case to the Texas Supreme Court.

Related listings

  • Court nixes new rape trial in dispute over poem

    Court nixes new rape trial in dispute over poem

    Headline Legal News 03/24/2011

    A court has overturned a decision granting a new trial to a convicted rapist who claimed his rights were violated when a poem written by the victim was kept out of evidence during trial in Wayne County. The poem expressing regret about alcohol and se...

  • High court unlikely to grant right to lawyer

    High court unlikely to grant right to lawyer

    Headline Legal News 03/22/2011

    The Supreme Court appears unlikely to rule that delinquent parents must be given a lawyer before judges can jail them for not paying child support.Several justices said Wednesday they were troubled by the case of a South Carolina father who was repea...

  • Ex-judge Camp sentenced to 30 days in prison

    Ex-judge Camp sentenced to 30 days in prison

    Headline Legal News 03/11/2011

    Jack Camp, the former federal judge ensnared in a scandal involving drugs and a stripper, was sentenced Friday to 30 days in prison and 400 hours of community service.Senior U.S. District Judge Thomas Hogan said he could not give a sentence of only p...

New York Adoption, Foster Care Litigation and Family Law

Rosin Steinhagen Mendel is a law firm dedicated to serving our clients in New York City, the surrounding counties in southern New York State, and in New Jersey, in the areas of adoption, foster care litigation, and family law.

We represent our clients in all types of proceedings that include termination of parental rights, permanency hearings, custody hearings, guardianship, administrative proceedings, and adoption. Our goal is to provide each of our clients with the best possible representation in all aspects of their cases, and clients appreciate our careful analysis of individual cases, through preparation and attention to detail. For over 35 years, our attorneys have represented adoptive parents, birth parents, foster parents, children, foster care agencies, and adoption agencies. We represent our clients in all types of proceedings that include termination of parental rights, permanency hearings, custody hearings, guardianship, administrative proceedings, and adoption.

Our goal for our lawyers is to provide each of our clients with the best possible representation in all aspects of their cases, and clients appreciate our careful analysis of individual cases, through our preparation and attention to detail.

Business News

New York Adoption and Family Law Attorneys Our attorneys have represented adoptive parents, birth parents, and adoption agencies. >> read