AUSTIN, Texas (AP) – Dallas County prosecutors are opposing a request from a man convicted of killing his two daughters that his scheduled execution be halted while appeals courts review a judge’s ruling last week that he’s mentally competent for execution.
The attorney for John David Battaglia has asked the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals to stop his Dec. 7 lethal injection.
Prosecutors have told the state’s highest criminal court while the competency ruling can be reviewed, the court isn’t required to give Battaglia a reprieve during the review. They also argue the 61-year-old Battaglia has received “all of the due process for which he is entitled” under Texas and federal laws.
Battaglia was condemned for shooting his daughters more than 15 years ago in Dallas while their mother listened helplessly over the phone.
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