The US Supreme Court has declined to hear the death penalty appeal in a horrific Garland murder case from 2012.
Matthew Lee Johnson is on death row for the May 2012 burning death of an elderly gas station clerk.
At that time, 76-year-old Nancy Harris was working at the Whip-in on Broadway in Garland when Johnson burst in. Police records show he doused her in lighter fluid and demanded cash. Then he set Harris on fire.
Police happened to be across the street and saw Harris, called for help, and got her to the hospital where she soon died from the severe burns.
A jury found him guily in 2013 and sentenced Johnson to death.
The Texas Court of Criminal Appeals, a US District Court judge, and the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals have all allowed the conviction and sentence to stand. The US Supreme Court did not give a reason for rejecting the case.
The case will now go back to a trial judge for an official death penalty date.
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