Execution date set for Fort Worth man convicted of killing pregnant woman and son
A Fort Worth man convicted of killing a pregnant woman and her 7-year-old son — who had his first execution date delayed in 2019 — is now scheduled to be executed on Oct. 12.
Stephen Barbee, 54, was found guilty of the murders of Lisa Underwood and her son, Jayden, in February 2006. He has long maintained his innocence and argued his confession was coerced by police. In October 2019, he appealed his conviction, saying his Sixth Amendment rights had been violated during his trial, and the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals ruled his case had grounds for an appeal. His execution, which was initially set for Oct. 2 2019, was delayed due to the appeal.
The Texas Court of Criminal Appeals dismissed Barbee’s appeal in February 2021, and the State of Texas scheduled his execution date on July 6.
Underwood, 34, lived in Fort Worth and raised Jayden as a single mother, according to an NBC article at the time. She was 7 months pregnant and, according to court documents, Barbee was the baby’s father. Barbee buried her and Jayden in a shallow grave in Denton County. Underwood was reported missing when she did not show up at her baby shower, prompting an Amber Alert.
Since 2006, Barbee has filed multiple appeals and petitions claiming his innocence.
In his 2019 appeal, he argued that during his three-day trial, his lawyers went against his wishes to maintain his innocence and told jurors during final arguments that Barbee was guilty. He also tied his case to the termination of Tarrant County Medical Examiner Dr. Marc Krouse, who conducted one of the autopsies in his case. Krouse was placed on leave in March after an audit found dozens of errors in 27 of his cases. According to court documents, Barbee also says that COVID-19 has limited his access to his lawyers.
The Texas Court of Criminal Appeals ruled that Barbee did not make a legitimate legal argument that his Sixth Amendment rights were violated. In May, the state responded to Barbee’s claims and denied each of them. The state said Krouse’s autopsies on Underwood and her son were done without error and Krouse’s audit more than a decade later is not relevant to Barbee’s case.
The state also dismissed Barbee’s claims that COVID-19 has prevented him from fair legal representation. The Texas Department of Criminal Justice resumed visitation at its correctional facilities on March 15, which allowed Barbee to visit with his attorneys, the state says.
Barbee at first told police that he accidentally killed Underwood and her son, according to his appeal in August 2019, but immediately recanted and said the confession was the product of fear and coercion.
