Kim Kardashian on Tuesday thanked the Supreme Court for granting convicted murderer Ruben Gutierrez a stay of execution just one hour before he was scheduled to die.
The reality star-turned-criminal justice reform advocate celebrated the news on social media, writing: ‘Thank you Supreme Court of the United States for granting a Stay of Execution for Ruben Gutierrez! Now his case will go back to the lower courts to decide the issues with his case!’
While Gutierrez was convicted of the murder of a 85-year-old woman in 1998, Kim and other activists claim that he was wrongfully convicted.
He had been set to die at 6 p.m. CDT at the Texas State Penitentiary in Huntsville but was granted a reprieve about an hour before he could have been executed.
His attorneys argued his religious rights are being violated because the prison system won´t allow a chaplain to accompany him in the death chamber.
Kim also retweeted Gutierrez’s wife Nicie who wrote: ‘I love my husband so much…only God knows what he has in store for us in our lives. We will get through this!!! Fight to save Ruben #RubenGutierrez love over death…TEST THE DNA.’
Kim Kardashian is thanking the U.S. Supreme Court for granting convicted murderer Ruben Gutierrez a stay of execution. She’s seen during a 2019 visit to the White House above
Gutierrez’s wife Nicie also tweeted to say: ‘I love my husband so much…only God knows what he has in store for us in our lives. We will get through this!!! Fight to save Ruben #RubenGutierrez love over death…TEST THE DNA’
The 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals on Friday had overturned a stay in the case tied to Gutierrez´s request for DNA testing he says could point to the real killer and his claims his religious rights are being violated
Gutierrez was scheduled to be put to death by lethal injection on Tuesday but he was given a last-minute stay of execution after his lawyers argued his religious rights were being violated
Gutierrez’s supporters have been pushing authorities to test DNA from the victim’s body and clear Ruben’s name.
Gutierrez was scheduled to be put to death by lethal injection on Tuesday but he was given a last-minute stay of execution by the highest court in the nation barely an hour before the state initial plans were carried out.
Kim had earlier tweeted: ‘Today is #RubenGutierrez’s scheduled execution. There is still time for @GovAbbott to stop this execution!!! We must get DNA collected from the body and do a full review before a man can be executed.’
She added: ‘Ruben Gutirrez has been on death row for over 20 years for a murder he said he did not commit. He has always maintained his innocence and has made requests to get DNA collected from the body of the victim tested to prove that he did not kill an 85 yr old woman during a robbery.’
He was granted the reprieve after his lawyers contended that his religious rights were being violated because the Texan prison system would not allow him to be joined by a chaplain on death row.
Gutierrez would have been the third inmate put to death this year in Texas and the seventh in the U.S.
Prosecutors said Gutierrez was attempting to steal more than $600,000 that Escolastica Harrison had hidden in her home when he killed her.
Gutierrez has long maintained he didn´t kill Harrison. His attorneys say there´s no physical or forensic evidence connecting him to the killing.
According to court documents, Gutierrez went to Harrison’s home on September 5, 1998, with two accomplices, Rene Garcia and Pedro Garza. There they stabbed Harrison to death with a screwdriver and made off with $56,000.
Garcia is serving a life sentence. Garza fled after he was released on bond while awaiting trial and remains a fugitive.
‘The state has fought such (DNA) testing at every turn, but surely the public interest would be best served by allowing DNA testing while the (Supreme Court) considers Mr. Gutierrez´s case, in order to prevent a wrongful execution in the future,’ Nolan said.
Authorities said Gutierrez befriended Harrison, a mobile home park manager and retired teacher, so he could rob her.
Prosecutors said Harrison had a mistrust of banks and hid her money underneath a false floor in her bedroom closet.
Cameron County District Attorney Luis Saenz said he was disappointed the Supreme Court delayed the execution as the victim’s family ‘has once again been denied justice.’
‘As a prosecutor, this changes nothing. It only delays his ultimate fate,’ Saenz said in a statement.
Prosecutors have said the request for DNA testing is a ‘ruse’ and Gutierrez was convicted on various pieces of evidence, including a confession.
The reality star celebrated the news on social media, writing: ‘Thank you Supreme Court of the United States for granting a Stay of Execution for Ruben Gutierrez! Now his case will go back to the lower courts to decide the issues with his case!’
Kim’s passion for criminal justice reform lead her ask President Trump to grant Alice Marie Johnson clemency in May 2018, seen together above. Just a month later the Commander In Chief commuted Johnson’s sentence
Aspiring lawyer Kim has been focused on criminal justice reform for several years now.
She went directly to President Donald Trump in May 2018 to lobby for the release of non-violent offender Alice Marie Johnson.
Kim’s plea seemed to convince POTUS, who commuted Johnson’s life-sentence just weeks after meeting with the shapewear proprietor.
Mrs. Kardashian-West spoke to CBS News shortly after Johnson’s release, explaining why she was first compelled to fight on the 65-year-old great-grandmother’s behalf.
‘I just couldn’t sit back and see Alice spend the rest of her life in prison,’ she said. ‘When I saw that she had a big family and her sisters and her grandkids, and it just reminded me of my family, and I thought, “What if one of us made a decision that just changed our family for the rest of our lives?”‘
‘Once I really got to know Alice, and realizing that there are thousands more Alices, I couldn’t just sit back and not try to make a difference and not try to change,’ she went on.
Kim is currently studying to become a lawyer. Though she has no plans to attend law school, California law does not require a JD to take the bar exam.
‘Once I really got to know Alice, and realizing that there are thousands more Alices, I couldn’t just sit back and not try to make a difference and not try to change,’ she explained. Kim and Alice are seen together in 2018 above
Instead, she is apprenticing with attorneys Jessica Jackson and Erin Haney of prison reform organization #cut50 to become a ‘law reader.’
Kardashian is currently studying for the First-Year Law Students’ Examination, unoffically known as the ‘baby bar.’ If she passes, she will continue her studies in preparation for the real California Bar Exam.
The California’s State Bar is considered one of the most difficult in the country.
During the February 2020 exam only 27% of overall candidates passed, according to the most recent California State Bar Association statistics.
Kim is currently studying to become a lawyer as an apprentice to attorneys Jessica Jackson and Erin Haney. She’s set to take the ‘baby bar’ exam soon