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\n\t\t\t\t\t\tTravis Scott performs onstage during Fanatics Fest NYC 2025 at Javits Center on June 20, 2025 in New York City.\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n
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\n\t\t\t\t\t\tTravis Scott performs onstage during Fanatics Fest NYC 2025 at Javits Center on June 20, 2025 in New York City.\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n
Slaven Vlasic\/Getty Images<\/p>\n
For more than 15 years, James Broadnax has sat on death row, convicted of capital murder charges in Dallas County in 2009<\/a>. Now, weeks before his scheduled execution date on April 30 of this year, a sworn statement from his co-conspirator alleges that Broadnax will be executed for a crime he did not commit. The revelation comes as Broadnax\u2019s lawyers and a roster of A-list celebrities and rappers plead with the U.S. Supreme Court about controversial evidence that was used to convict him, requesting a stay of execution.\u00a0<\/a><\/p>\n With less than 45 days until Broadnax\u2019s scheduled execution, any outcome is possible. Conditions surrounding capital punishments are known to change at the drop of a hat. As time unfolds and the case gains more traction, here\u2019s everything you need to know.\u00a0<\/p>\n Texas Department of Criminal Justice<\/p>\n The Crime <\/p>\n In 2009, James Broadnax and his co-defendant Demarius Cummings were convicted of the June 2008 murders of two Christian music producers, Stephen Swan, 26, and Matthew Butler, 28, in a botched robbery in a Garland recording studio parking lot. At the time of the shooting, Broadnax and Cummings, his cousin, were both 19 years old.\u00a0<\/p>\n The two men traveled to Garland with the intent of robbing someone. They stumbled upon Swan and Butler. Broadnax told the Dallas-Fort Worth Fox News syndicate<\/a> in a 2008 interview that he shot Swan once and Butler twice in the head with a .38 pistol. Then they stole the wallets and car keys of their victims before hiding the gun and high-tailing it out of North Texas. They were arrested in Texarkana shortly after and brought back to Dallas County to face trial.\u00a0<\/p>\n In 2008, Broadnax told police, and later reporters, that he \u201cblanked out\u201d during the crime, but accepted responsibility for the murders.\u00a0<\/p>\n The Case<\/p>\n Both Cummings and Broadnax, charged separately, were found guilty of capital offenses, which carry mandatory life sentences without the chance of parole or the death penalty. Cummings is serving a life sentence. Broadnax is held at the Polunsky Unit, the state\u2019s only prison that holds death row inmates.\u00a0<\/p>\n The initial trial lasted about two weeks. Broadnax was convicted by an all-white jury after 40 minutes of deliberation. At the time, Broadnax was characterized as a cold-blooded killer by the media.<\/p>\n \u201cI don\u2019t even think I got a conscience,\u00a0dog,\u201d he said to KTVT before his trial began. The station reported he retold details <\/a>of the crime \u201cin language too graphic to be published.\u201d<\/p>\n In other jailhouse interviews, Cummings maintained his innocence. <\/p>\n \u201cWe didn\u2019t plan to shoot nobody and nothing like that,\u201d Cummings told MyFOXDFW.com<\/a> in 2008. \u201cNo, I take that back. I did tell [Broadnax] we\u2019d probably have to pop them a few times or whatever. I did. But still, I didn\u2019t think he was going to do it.\u201d<\/p>\n But this week, Cummings has backpedaled on his innocence after more than 15 years. A petition filed with the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals includes a sworn statement from Cummings stating that he pulled the trigger, not Broadnax.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cI have always maintained that James was the one who shot Mr. Swan and Mr. Butler. But the fact that James received a death sentence for these crimes, while I was the one who shot the victims, has been weighing on my conscience, particularly as I have become more spiritual during my years in prison. \u2026 I decided it was time to come clean.\u201d<\/p>\n \u2014 Demarius Cummings in a written statement<\/p>\n Cummings writes that while high on PCP and marijuana, the two men orchestrated a story in which Broadnax would take the fall. The story was regurgitated to the media while the two men were still detained ahead of the trial.<\/p>\n \u201cI just blanked the f\u2014 out,\u201d Broadnax said in the interview with Fox. \u201cI shot him [Butler], and he stumbled back. I shot the driver [Swan]. He hit the ground, you know what I\u2019m saying, but he leaned up like he was going to try to get back up, so I shot him in the head. \u2026 I knew he was going to die anyway, but just to make sure \u2014 pop, pop.\u201d<\/p>\n Stay of Execution<\/p>\n Only a state and federal court, the Supreme Court and the governor can stop an execution. A stay is usually granted when new evidence is introduced or a procedural error can be proven. Cummings\u2019 sworn statement qualifies as new evidence, but does not necessarily promise a stay will be granted.\u00a0<\/p>\n Broadnax\u2019s lawyers filed a petition for a writ of certiorari in February, seeking the Supreme Court\u2019s review of the conviction. At least four of the nine justices would need to vote in favor of granting the petition. The Court has not yet indicated whether it will hear the case, but generally fewer than 2% of the thousands of petitions filed each year are granted. His legal team formally requested the highest court\u2019s review in 2021, but the petition was denied<\/a>. The new petition could be granted days, if not hours, before the scheduled execution, thereby delaying it.\u00a0<\/p>\n Gov. Greg Abbott has only stopped one execution in his 11 years as governor, and has been in office for more than 60 lethal injections.<\/p>\n Celebrity Attention <\/p>\n The case has stirred mass media attention as the clock ticks toward the scheduled execution date, primarily for the crutch on which the conviction leaned: 40 pages of hand-written rap lyrics penned by Broadnax. The lyrics detailed life on the streets, including references to crimes like murder and robbery.\u00a0<\/p>\n In early March, a collective of artists, including industry giants like T.I., Killer Mike and Young Thug, filed an amicus brief on behalf of Broadnax. The brief argues that the state \u201cused Broadnax\u2019s artistic expression to stoke racial and anti-rap bias\u201d and \u201cweaponized cultural expressions common to rap to improperly portray Broadnax as dangerous and threatening.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n Houston rapper Travis Scott filed a separate brief on behalf of Broadnax in March, which argues the \u201ccriminalization of rap music infringes First Amendment rights.\u201d Scott and his legal team propose that the Supreme Court clarify the constitutionality of using art as a means of conviction.\u00a0<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/broadnaxjames2.jpg\")
James Broadnax was convicted of capital murder and sentenced to death in 2009. <\/p>\n