Appeals court denies death row inmate request to reopen case

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — An appellate court has denied a Tennessee death row inmate’s request to reopen his case after unknown DNA was found. The Tennesseean reports the state Court of Criminal Appeals ruled late Thursday that 71-year-old Oscar Smith didn’t provide evidence that he is innocent of the murders of three people. Smith’s attorney earlier Thursday sought a stay of execution from the Tennessee Supreme Court so the lower court could consider the request. The motion for a state of execution was still pending Friday afternoon. Smith is scheduled to receive a lethal injection April 21. He was convicted of fatally stabbing and shooting his estranged wife, Judith Smith, and her sons in 1989. He has maintained that he is innocent.