A Texas man sentenced to death row with the help of 鈥渉ypnotized鈥� witness testimony is asking a Dallas County judge not to set his execution date as his attorneys try to prove he was wrongfully convicted with junk science.
The move from Charles Don Flores鈥� attorneys comes in response to the Texas Attorney General鈥檚 Office request that a Dallas judge set an execution date for Flores in a letter Monday. Tomee Heining, chief of the AG鈥檚 Criminal Appeals Division, offered several dates in November as available for Flores鈥� execution.
Attorneys for Flores say the move is unlawful. They鈥檙e asking Garza not to act as they attempt to get a new trial for Flores in light of evidence and a state law they say prove his innocence.
鈥淚nstead of a long-overdue new trial, the Attorney General seems to believe it would be more convenient to kill Charles Flores,鈥� said Gretchen Sween, Flores鈥� post-conviction attorney, in a statement. 鈥淭exans cannot stand by while their government willfully abuses its power like this. No Texan benefits from our State being known as a 鈥榣eader鈥� in executing individuals with substantial innocence claims.鈥�
A Dallas County jury sentenced Flores to death in 1999 for the murder of Elizabeth 鈥淏etty鈥� Black in her Farmers Branch home. Key eyewitness Jill Barganier, Black鈥檚 neighbor, initially told police she saw two men 鈥� who other witnesses said were both white, and the passenger had long hair 鈥� getting out of a multicolored Volkswagen and walking toward Black鈥檚 home that morning.
She later picked Richard Childs 鈥� who is white 鈥� out of a photo lineup as the driver but did not initially identify Flores. , as shown in a video obtained by Texas Public Radio, a method long scrutinized as unreliable in obtaining testimony.
A year later at trial, Barganier identified Flores, who鈥檚 Hispanic and had short hair, as the passenger in the car at the crime scene. Childs, the other suspect, to shooting the woman as part of a plea bargain after Flores' conviction. Childs after serving less than half his sentence.
A University of California San Diego psychology professor presented at an event in Dallas last year he said casts doubt on Barganier鈥檚 later testimony. John Wixted and others鈥� research suggests , especially when a witness is more confident about what they say they remember.
Memory isn鈥檛 static and thorough like a recording device, Southern Methodist University psychology professor Holly Bowen said at the Dallas event. Current goals, motivations and knowledge can easily shape what people remember, she said 鈥� like police questioning.
鈥淓yewitnesses want to be helpful, so imagine how frustrating it is to continually be questioned about a memory that you just don't have,鈥� she said. 鈥淰ictims want, you know, justice. They want closure. And I think the evidence indicates that this combination of things can really lead to the creation of false memories.鈥�
Flores has now exhausted his state and federal appeals options. He was set to die in 2016, but the state鈥檚 highest criminal court after his attorneys challenged the use of hypnosis.
In May 2020, the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals that Flores couldn鈥檛 contest his conviction under the state鈥檚 and denied Flores a new trial. The to look at Flores鈥� case in 2021.
In that time, Texas lawmakers passed a 2023 law inspired in part by Flores鈥� case making testimony using police hypnosis inadmissible in criminal trials. , and the Texas Rangers also stopped using it
But the law can鈥檛 apply retroactively to Flores鈥� case. It鈥檚 why his attorneys are still trying to find a way to make the case for his innocence with evidence they say is 鈥渋mminent.鈥�
Dallas County District Attorney John Creuzot鈥檚 office can ask Garza to set an execution date but doesn鈥檛 have the power to set one itself. The AG鈥檚 letter states if Creuzot鈥檚 office isn鈥檛 willing to participate in Flores鈥� proceedings, the AG is willing to represent the state for the time being, upon the DA鈥檚 request.
A spokesperson for Creuzot's office did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the newest filings in Flores鈥� case. The spokesperson told 四虎影院 last year the office has given Flores鈥� team 鈥渆verything they have requested and more than they are entitled to鈥� and declined to comment further on the case.
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