In this edition:
Scheduled executions: Two executions set for the fall in Texas
Update on innocence cases: Robert Roberson seeks stay of execution while Court considers new evidence of his innocence
In case you missed it: Group recreation program on death row builds community; Texas Court of Criminal Appeals sends the case of David Wood back to El Paso trial court
Featured events: TCADP book group on August 20; Arts of Oppression exhibit in Dallas on August 23
TCADP Summer Appeal: Support our cause today!
Quote of the month
“That Paxton pushed for the execution date and that a state district court agreed to schedule one with an appeal still pending, when a man’s life is hanging in the balance, is not justice. It makes no one safer, and it should shake every Texan’s sense of trust in our criminal justice system.”
– Dallas Morning News Editorial, “Robert Roberson’s new execution date makes it hard to keep faith in Texas courts,” July 23, 2025
Texas has not put anyone to death this summer but currently has two executions scheduled for the fall. Blaine Milam faces execution on September 25, 2025; he also had an execution date in January 2021 but received a stay from the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals (CCA) to consider evidence of his intellectual disability. We will share more information about his case when available.
To date in 2025, 27 people have been executed nationwide in 10 states. This includes four men in Texas. Florida alone accounts for one-third of the executions this year. Tennessee and Florida are set to carry out additional executions in August.
Robert Roberson seeks stay of execution so Court can consider new evidence proving his innocence
On July 24, 2025, attorneys for Robert Roberson, an innocent man facing execution on October 16, 2025, for a crime that never occurred, filed two motions in the Texas CCA.
First, his Emergency Motion for Stay of Execution asks that his recently set execution date of October 16 be stayed to ensure the Court has sufficient time to complete its review of his pending subsequent application for habeas corpus relief. Second, Roberson has filed a Motion for Oral Argument, which has never been held before the Texas CCA since his innocence was first raised in 2016. More critically, no court has yet reviewed the mountain of evidence proving that the tragic 2002 death of Roberson’s chronically ill toddler daughter, Nikki, resulted from illness, medical error, and accident. Learn more.
If you need a refresher on the case details, we recommend these resources:
1. Watch the New York Times Opinion Video in which Rev. Brian Wharton, the former detective who investigated Nikki’s death and now believes Roberson is innocent, meets with Roberson on death row and asks for his forgiveness. (July 30, 2024; 5 minutes)
2. Read John Grisham’s piece about Roberson published in D Magazine, “Will Texas Kill This Innocent Man?” (September 5, 2024).
How you can help
At this time, we are asking you to share coverage of the case on social media; like or share posts by TCADP or the Innocence Project on Facebook, X (Twitter), and Instagram. In the coming weeks, we will provide more opportunities for your involvement in this campaign. Together, let’s educate and engage more people in our fight for justice for Robert Roberson!
Finding humanity on Texas’s death row
“It’s nothing fancy — but after two decades in isolation, these are the building blocks of community.” So says Rudy Medrano to journalist Keri Blakinger in her wonderful story about a group recreation program that began on Texas’s death row in 2024. It involves about a dozen handpicked men who are let out of solitary confinement for a few hours each day. Read “No shackles, no cuffs: Texas death row loosens solitary confinement for first time in years.”
Texas Court of Criminal Appeals sends case of David Wood back to El Paso
On July 30, 2025, the Texas CCA sent the case of David Wood back to the trial court in El Paso after determining the eight claims he raised earlier this year – which led the Court to stay his March 13, 2025, execution date – merit further review. Those claims include an assertion of actual innocence as well as allegations the State obtained his conviction by presenting false testimony and suppressing exculpatory evidence in violation of Brady v. Maryland.
Wood has spent more than 30 years on death row and faced two serious execution dates. For years, he has sought DNA testing, which the State has refused to conduct.
TCADP Book Group
The TCADP Book Group meets every six to eight weeks on Zoom and reads a mix of fiction, non-fiction, and memoirs. Our next selection is The River is Waiting, a novel by Wally Lamb. We will discuss the book on Wednesday, August 20, 2025, at 7:00 PM CT. Register here. (Note: If you have signed up for previous book group meetings, you do not need to register again.)
Arts of Oppression exhibit in Dallas
Since 2016, Miles of Freedom, in collaboration with several university and arts entities, including UNT Dallas, UNT Law, and a residency with the SMU Pollock Gallery, has presented five shows highlighting the talent and skills of those incarcerated or formally incarcerated. The overarching goal of Arts of Oppression is to create value and hope for the artist and challenge historical narratives of mass incarceration and oppression.
The next installment in the series will take place on Saturday, August 23, 2025, from 6:00 to 10:00 PM at The Garden Studio (2515 Farrington St., Dallas, TX 75207).
TCADP Summer Appeal
TCADP is in the middle of our summer fundraising drive. If you haven’t donated in a while, we’re asking you to renew your investment in our fight for justice. And if you have never donated to TCADP, we invite you to give today.
Your support for the work of TCADP is critical. We have made tremendous progress in recent years— public support for the death penalty is eroding, decision makers are abandoning it, and powerful voices are calling for change— but we must do more to end all executions in Texas.
Invest in TCADP today and stand with us as we keep up our relentless fight for justice. Thank you!
If you prefer to donate by check, please make it payable to TCADP and mail it to TCADP; P.O. Box 82212; Austin, TX 78708.