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Houston Chronicle:

HOUSTON (AP) — The U.S. Supreme Court's decision this week to stop a Texas death row inmate's execution for a third time is likely part of a larger review by the high court of claims related to effective legal representation, legal experts said Wednesday.

While the court's action on Tuesday to delay Cleve Foster's execution for a third time in nine months is highly unusual, it isn't a guarantee his appeal will be successful, according to the experts.

"The best I can say is the recent stay gives me hope the court will consider the really important issues that are raised by his case," said Maurie Levin, Foster's attorney.

Foster, 47, had been set to die Tuesday evening in Huntsville for the fatal shooting of 30-year-old Nyaneur Pal, whose body was found in a ditch by pipeline workers in Fort Worth in February 2002.

Foster, a former Army recruiter, along with Sheldon Ward were convicted and sent to death row for Pal's murder. Ward died in prison last year of cancer.

....

Greg Westfall, a defense attorney from Fort Worth who has worked on 20 death row cases, said "it's a good guess" the high court granted Foster's latest reprieve because it wants to review the effective legal representation issues in the two other cases before ruling on Foster's case.

Fort Worth Criminal Defense Attorney Greg Westfall in Associated Press article published in the Houston Chronicle:

"Hopefully the Supreme Court will let us know what they have been thinking for the last (nine) months. It would be nice not to have to bounce back and forth like this," he said.

If the court were to again deny Foster's request to review his case, the reprieve would be lifted, clearing the way for a new execution date to be set.

http://www.chron.com/news/article/Experts-Texas-execution-delay-tied-to-review-2182315.php

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