ATLANTA — Just hours before a convicted murderer was to be put to death, the state's top court temporarily halted the execution.
Ray Cromartie was scheduled to be put to death Wednesday night for the 1994 murder of a convenience store clerk.
"It was a surprise to everybody," said Anthoney Cromartie, Ray's brother.
"We don't know how long Ray has a stay. But everyday makes a difference."
The stay is procedural in nature. An execution order was filed in Thomas County Superior Court, but the state Supreme Court said the order "may be void" because an appeal was pending before the high court at the time. A hearing is set for next week.
Meanwhile, the family is fighting for DNA testing to be allowed in the case.
"I don't know why they won't allow this DNA [testing]. We're all trying to figure out why," his brother said.
Ray Cromartie has long admitted he was at the Thomasville convenience store that April night. But he insists he didn't pull the trigger. His two accomplices, who both testified against him, are both out of jail.
His family and lawyers believe DNA testing will prove he wasn't the shooter.
A state judge denied the request for testing last month, saying Ray Cromartie waited too long.
The victim's daughter has asked for testing to be allowed.
"My father's death was senseless," Elizabeth Legette wrote to prosecutors, "executing another man would also be senseless, especially if he may not have shot my father."
"The state should listen to the victim's family is a case like this. You can't redo this. After the execution you can't look at it again. His sentence has been carried out," said Attorney Page Pate, a founding member of the Georgia Innocence Project.
The state is asking for a new execution window to take place sometime in mid-November.
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