A Texas appeals court has issued a rare stay of execution for David Leonard Wood, just two days before he was set to be put to death by lethal injection. The Texas Court of Criminal Appeals announced the decision on Tuesday without providing any explanation, delaying the execution “until further order of this court.”
Wood, who has spent nearly 40 years on death row, has consistently maintained his innocence. He was convicted in 1992 for the murders of six women and girls in El Paso in 1987, a case that led to him being labeled the “Desert Killer.” Despite his conviction, no DNA evidence has ever linked him to the crimes.
In a recent interview with USA TODAY, Wood expressed frustration over his conviction. “I’m accused of killing six people when an entire police force couldn’t find a single shred of evidence of anything,” he said. “How can I not be angry at the corruption that put me here?”
The victims in the case were 14-year-old Dawn Marie Smith, 15-year-old Desiree Wheatley, 17-year-old Angelica Frausto, 20-year-old Karen Baker, 23-year-old Ivy Susanna Williams, and 24-year-old Rosa Maria Casio. Their bodies were discovered in shallow graves in northeastern El Paso, all in different stages of decomposition. Investigators were unable to determine the cause of death for most victims, except one, who was confirmed to have been strangled.
Authorities also suspected that three missing girls—12-year-old Melissa Alaniz, 14-year-old Marjorie Knox, and 19-year-old Cheryl Vasquez-Dismukes—were victims of the Desert Killer, though their bodies were never found.
During Wood’s trial, the prosecution relied solely on circumstantial evidence. El Paso Assistant District Attorney Karen Shook argued that the pattern of the crimes pointed directly to Wood. “It’s clear that the signature aspect of these murders was the shallow graves in this dark, isolated desert area,” she said. “It became the private graveyard of the defendant, David Wood.”
The decision to stay Wood’s execution comes as concerns grow over wrongful convictions and the use of the death penalty in cases lacking physical evidence. His supporters argue that without DNA evidence, his guilt remains questionable.
Wood’s case is not the only execution to be halted recently. On the same day that the Texas court issued its ruling, a federal judge in Louisiana temporarily blocked the state’s first planned execution using nitrogen gas. The judge ruled that the method could cause “pain and terror,” potentially violating the inmate’s constitutional rights.
As Wood awaits further legal developments, his case continues to spark debate over the justice system and the reliability of circumstantial evidence in capital punishment cases. With the stay in place, his fate remains uncertain, and it is unclear when or if Texas will move forward with his execution. For now, Wood continues to fight for his life, insisting that he was wrongfully convicted and that justice has yet to be served.
