August 18
TEXASimpending execution
Texas death row inmate maintains innocence as latest execution date looms
"On December 8, 1998, Swearingen kidnapped and strangled a 19-year-old white
female."
This short statement is what you'll find under Larry Swearingen's death row
record for his summary of the incident. However, he's arguing that the details
of his case, and the murder of Melissa Trotter, are much more complex.
Larry Swearingen met Melissa Trotter, a 19-year-old Montgomery College student,
on December 6, 1998, where they had a conversation and exchanged numbers. They
planned on meeting up the next day, but Swearingen grew irritated when she
didn't arrive, according to co-workers.
They were spotted together on December 8 at the college library at 1:30 p.m.,
and were seen leaving together at 2:00 p.m. Melissa's car remained parked at
the school. This was the last time she was seen alive.
At 2:05 p.m., Swearingen returned a page and said he would have to call back
later because he was at lunch with a friend.
Swearingen returned to his trailer and left again sometime before 3:30 p.m.,
then returned again to the trailer sometime before 5:30 p.m., asked his
landlord some questions, then left again to pick up his wife, Terry Swearingen,
from his mother's house.
On December 11, Swearingen was arrested pursuant to unrelated outstanding
warrants.
On January 2, 1999, Melissa's body was found in Sam Houston National Forest
with a ligature made from pantyhose still tied around her neck. The police had
searched the area three times before her body was found by hunters. Swearingen
knew the area well.
Based on the state of decomposition, it was estimated that her body had been in
the woods for around 25 days, supporting the possible date of her death to be
December 8.
A supposed match to the other half of the pantyhose was found at the Swearingen
home, along with a pack of Malboro Lights and a lighter resembling one
belonging to Melissa. Neither Larry nor his wife smoked.
Fibers were found on Melissa's body matching Swearingen's jacket, car seat, and
carpet at his house. There were also hair strands in his car that looked to be
pulled from Melissa's head, showing definitively that she had been in
Swearingen's car at some point before her death.
Further incriminating evidence includes a letter that was written by Larry and
sent to his mother with the help of another inmate and a Spanish-English
dictionary from a woman named "Robin", claiming to know who Melissa's real
killer was. The letter gave insight into investigators' suspicions that
Melissa's death resulted from violence sparked by sexual rejection.
These are the undeniable facts of the case. Swearingen, however, clings to DNA
evidence and forensic science to maintain his innocence. He has been assigned
several execution dates, pushing back his death based on many of what he and
his attorneys perceive to be discrepancies.
They cite discrepancies in witness testimonies as well as cell phone records to
place Swearingen at different locations at key dates and times in the case,
according to his website.
The main focus of the defense, however, has been on the state of Melissa's
remains and DNA testing and evidence.
Statements from two other medical examiners have reevaluated Melissa's autopsy
report and estimated that based on lack of insect and bacteria colonies and
general state of her body and tissues upon discovery, the remains could have
only been in the forest for just under a week at most, even with the
near-freezing low winter temperatures. A statement such as this implies that
Swearingen is innocent since he was in jail three days after Melissa went
missing, and much longer before her estimated death according to this analysis.
One examiner allows for the exception of post-mortem refrigeration before her
body was deposited at the location, but says the absence of certain signs of
this on the body, this is not likely.
Additionally, Swearingen's attorneys have claimed that none of the DNA evidence
has definitively placed Larry at the scene of Melissa's body. Their appeals
have consisted of requests for DNA testing on Melissa's fingernail scrapings,
the ligature used for strangulation as well as the alleged other half found at
Larry's home, cigarette butts found near her body not offered at trial, various
items of her clothing, the rape kit, and hairs and hairbrush collected from the
scene.
After several appeals and a debacle involving another inmate rumored to be
taking the fall for Melissa's murder, DNA samples were finally tested, with no
conclusive evidence. Authorities were hesitant to test due to the "mountain of
evidence" already stacked against Swearingen.
Due to this process, DNA testing laws have changed in death penalty cases.
Previously, if it was unknown if there was biological evidence, it didn't need
to be tested, even if invisible to the
