FLASH STAFF REPORT
ERATH COUNTY (March 31, 2017) – The Eleventh Court of Appeals has upheld both the capital murder conviction of Eddie Ray Routh, who was convicted of killing American Sniper Chris Kyle and Chad Littlefield, as well as the murder conviction of Troy Doud, who was convicted of killing Stephenville resident Jeff Sewalt.
According to Erath County District Attorney Alan Nash, The Court of Appeals affirmed District Court Judge Jason Cashon’s judgement of conviction in both cases.
ROUTH
In overruling Routh’s complaints about the sufficiency of evidence presented at trial relating to Routh’s defense of insanity, and his complaints about procedures followed in the trial, the Court of Appeals set out in detail the evidence that the jury could have relied upon in finding Routh guilty of the double murder and rejecting his insanity defense.
Routh may file a petition for review to the Court of Criminal Appeals in Austin. The court in Austin has discretion to accept the case for review or decline to review it and let the Eastland Court ruling stand.
“I am proud of the work done by law enforcement, led by Texas Ranger Danny Briley, in
providing us with evidence to convict the murderer and have it stand up on appeal,” Nash wrote in his statement about the upheld convictions. “I remain grateful for the assistance of Jane Starnes of the Texas Attorney General’s Office in preparing and presenting the case at trial.”
DOUD
In overruling Doud’s complaints about the sufficiency of evidence presented at trial, the Court of Appeals set out in detail the evidence that the jury could have relied upon in finding Doud guilty of the murder.
Evidence included cell phone tower mapping placing Doud in proximity to the Sewalt property at the time of the murder, security camera footage of Doud following Sewalt in the direction of Sewalt’s home just prior to Sewalt’s death, and the discovery of a vehicle title in Doud’s home that had been on Sewalt’s person the morning of his death. Gunshot residue was also discovered on clothing Doud was wearing the day of the murder.
Doud may file a petition for review to the Court of Criminal Appeals in Austin. The court in Austin has discretion to accept the case for review or decline to review it and let the Eastland Court ruling stand.
“I am proud of the work done by law enforcement, led by Sgt. Jeremy Woodruff of the Erath County Sheriff’s Office, in solving this terrible crime, and providing us with evidence to convict the murderer and have it stand up on appeal,” Nash concluded in his release.
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