EXPLAINER: Concern mounts as Melissa Lucio’s execution nears

By JUAN A. LOZANO
Associated Press

HOUSTON (AP) — Nearly half of the jurors who sentenced a Texas woman to die for the 2007 death of one of her 14 children have called for her upcoming execution to be halted and for her to get a new trial. Fifty-two-year-old Melissa Lucio is set to be executed Wednesday for the death of her 2-year-old daughter Mariah in Harlingen. Her lawyers say new evidence shows that Mariah’s injuries were caused by a fall down a steep staircase, and many lawmakers and celebrities such as Kim Kardashian and Amanda Knox have rallied to Lucio’s cause. Prosecutors, though, maintain that the girl was the victim of child abuse. The Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles is set to consider her case Monday.