06-03-2025
James Staley's capital murder conviction reversed on appeal
WICHITA FALLS (KFDX/KJTL) — The Second Court of Appeals has reversed the capital murder conviction of James Irvin Staley, III, for the 2018 death of 2-year-old Jason Wilder McDaniel.
Staley was convicted and sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole by a Tarrant County jury on March 13, 2023, following a three-week trial in Fort Worth.
According to Wichita County officials, the Fort Worth appellate court informed them of the decision to reverse the conviction and remand the case for a new trial on Thursday, March 6, 2025.
OTHER COVERAGE: James Staley appeal submitted after oral arguments
John Gillespie, Wichita County District Attorney, said he doesn't agree with the Second Court of Appeals' decision.
'I'm extremely disappointed with the Second Court of Appeals' decision to reverse James Staley's conviction, and I disagree with the decision,' Gillespie said.
Despite the reversal of Staley's conviction for Wilder's death, Gillespie said he will use every resource at his disposal to ensure justice is served.
'The fight isn't over, this is only the beginning,' Gillespie said. 'We will exhaust every appellate option available, including petitioning the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals to reinstate the conviction. If we cannot get the conviction reinstated, then we'll try the case again and get him a second time. I've only begun to fight.'
Staley has been serving his sentence in the Bill Clemens Unit in Amarillo while awaiting the result of his appeal, which was submitted nearly a year ago on March 13, 2024.
According to Keith Hampton, Staley's appellate attorney, his case for an appeal of his conviction stems from a failure by the Wichita Falls Police Department to produce an adequate search warrant or affidavit to obtain such.
Staley's defense alleged that key evidence taken from a Mac Mini and Staley's cell phone was unconstitutional because the specific devices were not named in the affidavit or warrant, and therefore, it should not have been admitted into evidence during Staley's trial.
Gillespie's main counterpoint to Hampton's argument was that specific details actually were contained within the affidavit that led to the warrant to search Staley's devices.
'This was far from boilerplate,' Gillespie said. 'These ample facts implicated a key Texas law, Article 3836, which authorizes prosecutors to provide relationship and state-of-mind evidence in murder trials.'Further details regarding the reasoning for the appellate court's decision are unavailable at this time.
The memorandum opinion has not been publicly released by the Second Court of Appeals as of the publication of this story.
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