Ruben Gutierrez wants to be able to sue prosecutors to compel them to test evidence that he says will prove he did not kill a Brownsville woman in 1998.

The Supreme Court on Monday was divided over whether a Texas man on death row has a legal right to sue, known as standing, to bring federal civil rights claims challenging the constitutionality of the Texas laws governing DNA testing.

The Supreme Court appeared swayed by a Texas death row inmate’s argument he has the legal right to sue over the state’s laws governing DNA testing, as he seeks to obtain testing on evidence he claims would prevent his execution.