henry hank skinner was convicted in 1995 for the murders of his live in girlfriend, twila busby and her two sons. he sought dna evidence hoping it would reveal who he calls the real killer. as you just heard, a temporary stay was granted less than three hours ago. the supreme court order the the stay as it considers the issue of taking up the broader appeal. joining us are brandy grisham, jason clark, for the texas department of criminal justice. sandra ageorges skinner and curtis mcart think, a former death row inmate. he was exonerated after spending 19 years in prison for first degree murder. jason, you have the public information order. you were ready for the execution. did you get the word from the court to stay it? >> yes. we were notified through the attorney general's office that u.s. supreme court had issued a stay and so we went over and did speak with mr. skinner. >> larry: he was eating his meal, i understand? >> yes, sir. he was finishing up his last meal. he had eaton most of the last meal, and he was on the phone, i believe, with his daughter, just a few minutes prior. he

hank skinner is appealing to both the state's governor and the u.s. supreme court to stop the planned execution. the 47-year-old denies any part of the 1993 murders of his girlfriend and her two sons. although his attorneys do not say they're convinced he's innocent, they do argue that all the evidence should be examined. if his appeal is denied, hank kiner will become the firsth prisoner to become executed in texas this year. >>> now here's a look at other stories making the news today in america. >>> in drit one accident prompted a second one. a fire truck parked on the tracks responding to a call. one firefighter and one passenger suffered minor injuries. >>> in cleveland, ohio, all that remains of a historic church are sandstone walls after it was ravaged by a fire. it dated back to 1887. police and authorities believe a lightning struck -- lightning strike may have ignited the blaze. >>> montpelier hosted a rather rotten event yesterday. the 16 national finalists in the rotten sneakers brought their best and got their worst sneakers out for the m

hank skinner had requested dna so testing could be done. he believes it will clear him of the 1995 slayings of his girlfriend and her two sons. it's not guaranteed he'll get the testing. it just means they'll decide whether to look at his case. >>> california voters will decide on marijuana legalization. they got enough petitioners to get it on the ballot. if approved they'll be the first state to approve legalization. >>> and in iceland, scientists are getting an up-close look at a fiery volcano that started erupting this weekend. there are concerns it could trigger a more powerful volcano close by as it has in the past. fortunately right now there are no signs of that happens. >>> and now here's an early look at how wall street will kick off the day. the dow owesed at 10,836. the s&p shed 6 points. taking a look at overseas trading this morning, in tokyo the nikkei went up 13 points. in hong kong the hang seng tumbled 230 points. >>> well, continues housing woes and worries yesterday set the dow to the biggest drop in a month. portugal's

hank skinner claims d.n.a.testing can prove he's innocent and the court's order could allow them to access that evidence. skinner was convicted of strangling his girlfriend and staging her two adult sons in 1993. still ahead here on the "cbs evening news," what health care reform will mean to americans on medicare. our user's guide is next. my name's lisa. i'm from fayetteville, north carolina, ...and i smoked for 29 years. the one thing about smoking - is it dominates your life, and it dominated mine. i honestly loved smoking, and i honestly didn't think i would ever quit. it was very interesting that you could smoke on the first week. (announcer) chantix is a non-nicotine pill. in studies, 44% of chantix users were quit during weeks 9 to 12 of treatment, compared to 18% on sugar pill. it is proven to reduce the urge to smoke. i did have an unopen pack of cigarettes in my purse and i said, "what the heck, i don't need these..." ...i said, you know, "bye, i don't need you anymore, you're not my crutch, i don't

hank skinner asked for the delay to allow time for d.n.a. testing, testing he claims will clear him. skinner was found guilty of killing his girlfriend and her two adult sons in 1993. the execution is delayed until the justices decide whether they'll refew the -- review the case. >>> new details in the disappearance of a british exchange student. someone found personal items belonging to him along the james river in richmond today. university police do not suspect foul play. >>> civil rights icon dr. dorothy heights is getting get well cards and birthday wishes. dozens of people gathered at national council of negro women today to celebrate her birthday but she wasn't there. her friends thought she looked tired so they took her to howard university hospital. she insisted the party go on so her 98th birthday was celebrated in her absence. >> they say she went there kicking and jeeping, okay. this was -- and screaming, okay. this was in the a happy moment. >> she needed a rest to be very honest. she was just plain tired. >> dorothy height rema

. >>> the supreme court delayed the execution of hank skinner.ive the state of texas longer to do dna testing on the prisoner. the police found him covered in two of the victim's blood and new testing he says will prove he's innocent. >>> and you've seen the bumper stimmers saying hang up and drive. that will be law here in maryland and they're close to cracking down on the use of cell phones while driving. >> reporter: cell phones are increasingly attached to marylanders hands and voters are asking for a statewide band. >> they're seeing people like this and driving is supposed to be a privilege. >> reporter: this past bill makes it illegal if you've already been pulled over. >> there's always distractions. you can't out law being stupid. there do you think they should make it illegal. yes. >> and if anyone talks on the phone, it should be with an ear device. >> reporter: if this bill becomes law, you'll get a $40 ticket for doing anything on your cell phone while driving accept the power button. >> i don't want to pay the 40- dollar fine. >> i

the at the last minute a temporary stay has kept hank skinner alive just for now.ll talk to his wife and those who are fighting to keep him from the death chamber. we're going to discuss about two savage attacks on two teens who happened to attend the same school in florida. some threatening just reelvealed text messages might reveal something. >> coming up right here, america's racial divide, what this new report says about dreams of a post racial nation. that when we come back. [ male announcer ] when we built our first hybrid, youtube didn't exist. and facebook was still run out of a dorm room. when we built our first hybrid, more people had landlines than cell phones, and gas was $1.75 a gallon. and now, while other luxury carmakers are building their first hybrids, lexus hybrids have traveled 5.5 billion miles. and that's quite a head start. ♪ a day on the days that you have arthritis pain, you could end up taking 4 times the number... of pills compared to aleve. choose aleve and you could start taking fewer pills. just 2 aleve have the strength... to relieve

supreme court stepped in and delayed the execution of hank skinner. skinner claims the dna testing will clear him. he was convicted of killing his girlfriend and her two adult sons in 1993. the execution is delayed until the jews decide whether to review the case. >>> kicking somebody out of the military because they're gay will soon be a little bit more difficult. defense secretary robert gates is set to announce new guideline to discharging a service member under the current don't ask don't tell poll si. a discharge has to be approved by officers who hold a rank equivalent to a one-star general or above. secretary gates is repeal the ban on gays serving openly in the military. >>> a lot of you still probably have not mailed back the census forms. 100million households to be exact. 0% of the country has responded and that is encouraging news for government officials because it puts the nation on targe tote match or surpass participation rates in 000. >>> when we come back, a string of car break-ins at a metro parking garage. wait until you hear how o

hank skinner's attorneys say dna evidence could prove he's innocent of killing his girlfriend and twoons in 1983. now he's got more time to argue for an appeal. >>> actor robert culp died today after hitting his head in a los angeles park. he appeared in dozens of tv shows including "i spy" and "everyone loves raymond." he was 79. >>> the colorado man who falsely reported his son had floated away in a balloon last fall is now grounded. he's finishing his 90 day sentence with home detention. richard hain heene must stay home at least 12 hours a day, and can only leave home for visits with his lawyer or his doctor. >>> the search is on for a laundry thief in hartford, connecticut. a woman was caught on surveillance videotape grabbing items from clotheslines at an apartment building. the apartment manager says the suspect is very picky and carefully touches the fabric to make sure it's just the right -- >> it's downey soft. i also like the fact she's checking out the video camera. is that a video camera? i will go ahead and do this. >>> the beat "360" winners. daily challenge to viewers,

henry hank skinner was originally scheduled to be executed by lethal injection this evening for the 1993 his live-in girlfriend and her two sons. larry king has an exclusive interview with his wife. that's tonight at 9:00 eastern. >>> a popular manufacturer of those widely used baby slings is now recalling more than a million of them after three infants died. the consumer products safety commission is urging parents to immediately stop using the infantino llc slings for babies under the age of 4 months of because of suffocation risks. the company is offering free replacements for its sling rider and the wendy's belissimo models. for more information call 1-866-860-1361 or visit the firm's website www.infantino.com. >>> and just days after voting in favor of the health care reform bill, a conservative house democrat may be dealing with angry constituents. the fbi is investigating a suspicious incident at the home of representative tom periello's brother in which a propane tank line was severed. a source told politico monday that a tea party activist intended to post the congressman's addr

supreme court stepped in and delayed the execution of hank skinner.clear him. he was convicted of killing his girl friend and two adult sons in 1993. the execution is delayed until the justices decide whether to review the case. >>> voters in california will decide whether to make marijuana legal for recreational use. an initiative was just certificated for the november ballot. the state has already legalized medical marijuana. california would be the first state to legalize pot for recreational use if it passes. people 25 years or older would be able to possess up to one ounce. >>> and job cuts are likely coming for the prince william county school district. the school board last night approved the budget for next year. it calls for eliminating more than 200 positions. that's down from more than 700 originally proposed. salaries will freeze and class sizes will likely increase. budget officials were able to keep the number of layoffs down after the state budgetprovided more funding than expected. >>> today we'll see what a new memorial to former pres