Kim Kardashian on Tuesday thanked the U.S. Supreme Court for granting convicted murderer Ruben Gutierrez a stay of execution.
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.
Broken system: 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
Lucky: 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
They 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.
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.
Seeking justice: 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!’
Going all the way to the top: 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.
Systematic change: ‘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.
Hitting the books: 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