HUNTSVILLE, Texas — Attorneys who contended ‘‘junk science’’ was used to send a father to death row for killing his 2-year-old daughter 14 years ago have won a reprieve blocking the Texas inmate’s execution set for next week.

Robert Roberson III, 49, was set to die Tuesday for the February 2002 death of his daughter, Nikki Curtis, at his home in Palestine in East Texas. But the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals sent his case back to his Anderson County trial court late Thursday to review claims he is innocent of capital murder. There is no timetable for the appeal to be resolved.

Lawyers argued Roberson’s conviction was based on ‘‘junk science’’ and ‘‘false, misleading, and scientifically invalid testimony’’ and that new scientific evidence establishes he would not have been convicted.

The child had serious head injuries, and Roberson said she fell from a bed. Medical staff at a Palestine hospital called police because they considered the injuries suspicious.

Associated Press