Texas death row prisoner seeks stay on jury discrimination grounds

Sept. 27 (UPI) -- A Texas death row prisoner convicted of killing two brothers in 1991 sought a stay of execution from the U.S. Supreme Court on Monday, one day before his scheduled execution.

Rick Rhoades, 57, was sentenced to death in 1992 for the murders of Bradley Allen and Charles Allen. Rhoades stabbed the brothers to death as they slept after he entered their home and stole from them.

The murders happened one day after Rhoades was paroled after serving a six-year prison sentence for burglary.

Rhoades' attorneys previously sought a stay of execution from the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, both of which denied him.

He filed a new application for a stay Monday with the U.S. Supreme Court, seeking more time to gather information about jurors on his case. Defense lawyers believe people of color may have been intentionally excluded from serving on the jury.

If Texas goes forward with Rhoades' execution Tuesday, he'll be the first person convicted in Harris County to be put to death in two years, according to the Death Penalty Information Center. He would be the third executed in Texas and sixth executed in the United States in 2021.