Robert Robinson

Robert Roberson is an autistic father who has spent more than 20 years on death row for a crime that never actually occurred. After taking his 2-year-old daughter, Nikki, to the emergency room, he was wrongfully accused of her death. According to Roberson, he had discovered his daughter unconscious after she had fallen from the bed. Nikki was already severely ill with pneumonia and had a fever of 104.5. She had previously been prescribed Promethazine, a medication that is no longer prescribed to children as it results in suppressed respiration to the lungs and can be fatal. Roberson had immediately rushed his daughter to the hospital after finding her. Unfortunately, due to swelling and bleeding of the brain, Nikki had been pronounced dead.

           Speculation and concern began to develop as to how exactly Nikki had passed away due to Roberson's inability to communicate properly. Unknown to the hospital staff, Roberson suffered from Autism. Autism made showing emotion towards the situation and properly communicating with the staff difficult. He was unable to properly explain Nikki’s previous health issues, the dangerous medication she was on, or the moments that led to her death. His inability to show emotion or explain then led to the hospital’s ultimate decision to call both Child Protective Services and local police. The Hospital accused Roberson of child abuse, claiming Nikki had died from Shaken Baby Syndrome. Since Roberson was unable to defend himself properly, he was placed under arrest.

           Roberson’s trial was far from fair. His own attorney attempted to pressure him into taking a plea deal to avoid trial. When Roberson declined, his attorney failed to properly defend him and instead decided to agree with the prosecution, only arguing that Roberson didn’t have the intent to kill. When an autopsy was finally done, it was found that Nikki’s death was a result of the medication and illness, with no signs of abuse. Still, the prosecution persisted, claiming Roberson was responsible. Ultimately, Robert Roberson was found guilty and sentenced to death.

           Years later, Roberson is still fighting for his innocence, only now, he has the help of the Innocence Project. The organization had its investigation done, having multiple experts look at Nikki’s medical history and autopsy. They found that Nikki was suffering from two violent forms of pneumonia that were actively starving her brain of oxygen. The medication she was given was also not fighting off the infections and instead causing the symptoms to accelerate. The mix of illness and this medication had resulted in Nikki’s body going into sepsis and eventually septic shock. When entering septic shock, her temperature would spike, and within a few hours, her vital organs would shut down one by one. On that day, Nikki had spiked a fever of 104.5 degrees. She had been in bed all day. By the time Roberson had found her, it was already too late. Nikki’s cause of death had not been due to Shaken Baby Syndrome but had actually been from a violent and fatal lung infection.

Roberson was meant to be executed on October 17^th, 2024; thanks to the efforts of the Innocence Project, his execution was postponed for one year. The organization is still working to free him before his execution, which is meant to take place on October 16^th, 2024. While they have not yet succeeded, they have already made small accomplishments towards regaining his freedom and will not stop until they do.