Melissa Elizabeth Lucio was born on June 18,1969 and is the first woman of Latino descent to be sentenced to death in the US state of Texas.
16 Facts About Melissa Lucio
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Melissa Lucio was convicted of capital murder after the death of her two-year-old daughter, Mariah, who was found to have scattered bruising in various stages of healing, as well as injuries to her head and contusions of the kidneys, lungs and spinal cord.
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Melissa Lucio has maintained her innocence, and Cornell Law School professor Sandra Babcock has called the prosecution "by far the weakest capital case I've ever seen".
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Melissa Lucio's execution was set for April 27,2022, but an appeals court granted her a stay on April 25,2022.
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Melissa Lucio was born in Lubbock, Texas, on June 18,1969, according to court records.
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Melissa Lucio's father died when she was an infant, and the family moved to the Rio Grande Valley, where her mother had grown up, when she was a toddler.
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Melissa Lucio was married at the age of 16 and had her first five children with Guadalupe Melissa Lucio.
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Melissa Lucio stated that he was often addicted to drugs and alcohol and was physically abusive.
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Melissa Lucio was addicted to cocaine and tested positive shortly after Mariah was born; this prompted authorities to place her children in foster care.
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Three older children went to live in Houston with their father, and Melissa Lucio regained custody of the others in late 2006.
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Melissa Lucio admitted to having spanked Mariah, but denied ever having abused her, which she repeated more than 100 times.
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One of Melissa Lucio's sons was questioned by law enforcement shortly after Mariah's death.
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Melissa Lucio's defense argued that Mariah's injuries were from falling down the stairs, and that Melissa Lucio's psychological functioning contributed to her conflicting reports given to authorities.
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Melissa Lucio was pregnant with twins at the time of Mariah's death, and authorities compelled her to place them for adoption after delivering them while in jail.
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Melissa Lucio concluded that Dr Farley appeared to have jumped to wrong conclusions.
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Melissa Lucio was scheduled for execution on April 27,2022.