The execution of Texas death row inmate David Leonard Wood, which was set for this week, was suspended by the Texas Court of Appeals on Tuesday.
Wood, 67, has spent nearly 33 years on death row inmates and is now deadly injected this week due to the murder of six girls and young women buried in the desert near El Paso. The court paused Wood's execution “until further orders” without elaborating in the three-page order.
Six of the nine members of the court made that decision, Fox 4 News Dallas-FortWort It has been reported. Juryers Mary Lou Keel and Gina Parker remained Wood's execution, and Judge Bert Richardson, who had heard all of Wood's complaints since 2011, did not take part.
This was another delay in Wood, previously executed in 2009, where he was put on hold about 24 hours ago for allegations that he was intellectually disabled and therefore not qualify for execution. These claims were later rejected by a judge and Wood was due to die Thursday.
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The photo of David Wood is scheduled to be executed this week after spending more than 30 years on death row inmates. (Texas Department of Criminal Justice via FOX 4)
The 1987 murder remained unsolved for several years until authorities said he boasted to his cellmate that he was a so-called “desert killer.” The victim's body was found to be buried in a shallow grave in the same desert region northeast of El Paso.
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File – Convicted murderer David Leonard Wood poses for a photo of a death row in Huntsville, Texas, on July 15, 2009. (MikeGraczyk, file)
Authorities said Wood gave the victim a ride, drove into the desert, where he sexually assaulted and killed him. The victims were 23-year-old Rosa Casio and Ivy Williams. Karen Baker, 21; Angelica Frust, 17; Desiree Wheatley, 15; Dawn Smith, 14.
Two other girls and one young woman were also reported missing, but were never found.
Documents from David Wood's prison files. (Texas Department of Criminal Justice via FOX 4)
Wood, a repeatedly convicted sex offender who worked as a mechanic, has long maintained his innocence.
“I didn't do that. I'm innocent of this case. I'll fight it,” Wood said in a recent document filed in his appeal.
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Wood's execution was the second US suspension Tuesday after a federal judge halted Louisiana's first execution using nitrogen gas next week.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
