When Anthony Fuentes was executed following a conviction for murder, his final words were ‘One day, the truth will come out’.

Now, 19 years later, former Haverfordwest schoolgirl Jaice Jose will be joining a team of legal investigators in Houston, Texas, where they will re-examine the case.

She says the aim will be to discover the truth that led to what they believe was Fuentes’ wrongful execution.

Jaice, a law graduate who is in her final year at Bristol University, has spent the last four months working on the case in preparation for the trip.

She, together with fellow law graduate Alice Neumegen, will be working under the wing of world renowned Human Rights lawyer Clive Stafford Smith.

They wll interview attorneys, jurors, witnesses, judges and other legal professionals who were all involved in his case.

“Anthony Fuentes deserves exoneration, as there were so many flaws in his case and there simply wasn’t enough evidence to convict him,” said Jaice.

Fuentes, a 19-year-old Latino, was convicted of murder by an all-white jury in 1996 following a failed robbery at a local convenience store.

He was sentenced to death in Harris County, Texas, which was considered one of the 'deadliest' courthouses in America.

Jaice and her team believe that the case was founded on questionable witness testimonies and a shocking lack of physical evidence.

Fuentes' lawyers filed a last-minute appeal based on the accuracy of the testimony from eyewitnesses who identified him as the shooter.

They also argued that the police used suggestive tactics to get witnesses to identify Fuentes, and that prosecutors withheld key information from the trial defence lawyers.

But on November 17, 2004, Fuentes was executed by a lethal injection at the Huntsville death chamber in Texas.

“Being myself a British-Indian, I’ve had to balance and embrace the different aspects of my own cultural identity, and also deal with the challenges and complexities that arise,” explains Jaice.

“Growing up in Haverfordwest and going to Prendergast primary school and Sir Thomas Picton Secondary, I was pretty balanced academically, and took the sciences alongside literature and RE. I loved both.

“But as I started to research and watch documentaries, I began to realise the importance of human justice and the value of representing the voices of marginalised communities in the legal sphere.”

Jaice was accepted to read law at Bristol and now, following her graduation, has applied to the Bar with the aim of becoming a barrister specialising in international human rights.

She will be arriving in Houston, Texas in August and will remain there until November.

To help fund the trip, Jaice is writing and sharing a collection of 30 original poems which explore the emotions and narrative of innocent victims of the death penalty. Upon completion, the collection will be sent to all donors.

She and Alice Neumegen have also launched a Crowdfunder campaign.

“This is an all or nothing attempt as we believe that the justice system seriously failed Anthony,” she said.

“During our time in Texas we want to fully re-investigate the case and ensure that, as he stated in his final words, ‘The truth will be known’.