ITALY – After a hearing Monday in Italy, the Italian court considering whether to extradite Harris County capital murder suspect Lee Gilley is still not satisfied with information it has received from the U.S. government and Harris County prosecutors about the punishment Gilley faces if convicted.
Gilley, now 40, is accused of strangling his pregnant wife Christa Bauer in Oct. 2024. If convicted in Texas, he faces either death or life without parole, although prosecutors have not indicated any intent to seek death.
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In a new order obtained by KPRC 2 News, the court is asking for additional clarifications on whether a possible life sentence for Gilley could be reviewed based on any rehabilitative progress he may make while imprisoned, if convicted.
Gilley fled the U.S. in May after cutting off his ankle monitor and allegedly using a fake name and forged travel documents just weeks before he was scheduled to stand trial.
The court has previously expressed concern over the death penalty punishment possibility, citing an email from Harris County prosecutor Janna Oswald, in which she declined to file any official documentation with the state district court indicating death would not be sought.
According to an English translation of the order, the court is now also asking the U.S. for a death penalty waiver in the case, as Italian law requires a guarantee that the death penalty will not be imposed.
A previous order from the court sought clarification on the death penalty and life without parole issues, which the U.S. responded to in August with a diplomatic note from the U.S. Embassy in Rome and a memo from the U.S. Department of Justice, according to the document.
The court raised issue with the possibility of life without parole, citing the Italian constitution, in which punishment must serve a rehabilitative purpose, according to a translation of the order, while also likening life without parole in Texas to the death penalty as the offender would be permanently removed from society.
The U.S. now has until Sept. 30 to provide an answer to Italy with another hearing scheduled for Oct. 7, according to the order.
