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The Last 12 Weeks

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Rating
★★★★☆
4.3
from
299 reviews
This podcast has
6 episodes
Language
English
Date created
2026/06/10
Latest episode
2026/06/18
Average duration
34 min.
Release period
1 days

Description

In 1992, David Wood was convicted of murdering young women and girls and burying them in the desert outside El Paso, earning him the nickname the Desert Killer. More than 30 years later, his lawyers have one last chance to argue his innocence and stop his execution. “The Last 12 Weeks” follows a team of capital defense lawyers as they try to save their client’s life. The series, produced by Serial Productions and The New York Times in collaboration with The Marshall Project, focuses on the high stakes and at times bizarre work involved in trying to halt an execution. With an extraordinary level of access to a capital case in its final stretch, the longtime death penalty reporter Maurice Chammah takes listeners into the room with the lawyers as the clock ticks down. Maurice and Alvin Melathe, a producer, follow members of the defense team as they look for alternate suspects, try to find new evidence to poke holes in the case, and track down hard-to-find witnesses. In the end, will the lawyers’ efforts be enough to persuade a deeply skeptical court system — and stop an execution three decades in the making? “The Last 12 Weeks.” A five-part series … on a deadline.

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Episode 5: A Quiet Morning
2026/06/18
Days before the execution, the defense team scrambles to respond to an unexpected ruling, while the lead lawyer makes what may be his final visit to David Wood on death row. Everyone waits to find out Wood’s fate. To find out about new shows from Serial Productions, and get a look behind the scenes, sign up for our newsletter at nytimes.com/serialnewsletter. Have a story pitch, a tip, or feedback on our shows? Email us at [email protected] Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
Episode 4: David Wood
2026/06/18
To justify sentencing David Wood to death, prosecutors argued that he was a convicted rapist turned serial killer. And yet, Wood has insisted all along that isn’t true. We head to death row to hear him tell us why. But not before a victim of his earlier crimes has her say about the kind of person she believes he is. To find out about new shows from Serial Productions, and get a look behind the scenes, sign up for our newsletter at nytimes.com/serialnewsletter. Have a story pitch, a tip, or feedback on our shows? Email us at [email protected] Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
Episode 3: The Mother & The Informant
2026/06/18
In the final weeks before the execution date, the defense team has to decide just how far it’s willing to push people to save David Wood’s life. The team’s deliberations lead to a key witness on his deathbed … and the mother of one of the Desert Killer’s victims. To find out about new shows from Serial Productions, and get a look behind the scenes, sign up for our newsletter at nytimes.com/serialnewsletter. Have a story pitch, a tip, or feedback on our shows? Email us at [email protected] Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
Episode 2: The Whataburger Declaration
2026/06/18
The way the state constructed the case, there’s no one big shiny piece of evidence for the defense to knock down. Instead, there are a million little threads to pull at. With less than two months until the execution, the lawyers comb through the evidence one last time, and a new witness offers unexpected revelations. To find out about new shows from Serial Productions, and get a look behind the scenes, sign up for our newsletter at nytimes.com/serialnewsletter. Have a story pitch, a tip, or feedback on our shows? Email us at [email protected] Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
Episode 1: What If I Follow You Around?
2026/06/18
In 1992, David Wood became El Paso’s most notorious convicted serial killer. He has been on death row ever since. More than 30 years later, his lawyers have just a few months  to argue his innocence and stop his execution. To find out about new shows from Serial Productions, and get a look behind the scenes, sign up for our newsletter at nytimes.com/serialnewsletter. Have a story pitch, a tip, or feedback on our shows? Email us at [email protected] Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
Trailer
2026/06/15
In 1992, David Wood was convicted of murdering young women and girls and burying them in the desert outside El Paso. He has been on death row ever since. “The Last 12 Weeks” takes you behind the scenes as a capital defense team races against the clock to stop an execution 30 years in the making. To find out about new shows from Serial Productions, and get a look behind the scenes, sign up for our newsletter at nytimes.com/serialnewsletter. Have a story pitch, a tip, or feedback on our shows? Email us at [email protected] Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Podcast reviews

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4.3 out of 5
299 reviews
★★★★☆
Cooppegl 2026/08/12
If not David, who?
Well done. I feel that some reviewers are focusing on David getting what he deserved due to his previous crimes, but not getting this right, possibly ...
★★★☆☆
Bad app dev 2026/07/20
Weird case to podcast about, peace out Dave
A serial rapist gets convicted of a different crime that carries the punishment rape convictions SHOULD?!!?!! Seems like karma.
★☆☆☆☆
ryantkay 2026/07/19
Typical True Crime 🤷‍♂️
Well produced, well delivered, but the real life outcome being a “shruggie” just confirms that true crime series are as easy to produce as Below Decks...
★★☆☆☆
ThePassenger444 2026/07/14
Forgettable
Literally. I listened five days ago and had to play the last 10 minutes to remember what it was about.
★☆☆☆☆
RRfan09 2026/07/10
Massive editing issues
Avid listener and the lack of cleanliness in the editing made me constantly wonder if I had accidentally skipped ahead. Is this what Serial had degra...
★★★★★
Listener/ 2026/07/07
Insights into the Arbitrary
I thought that the commentary from the host was unbiased, thoughtful, and gave me insight into how arbitrary the “System” is, regardless of the merits...
★★★★★
Girlnamedmelissa 2026/07/04
Bye David
Whether he did it or not I’m ok with a rapist dying. Bye David
★★★☆☆
mmezynski 2026/07/04
Great for background noise
Beyond boring.
★★★★★
KHASL 2026/07/01
Intriguing and Layered
It’s not biased in favor of the criminal. If anything, it’s a window into the flawed tenacity of the lawyers. It’s almost a comedy of errors. They i...
★★★☆☆
Kara1974 2026/06/30
Confused on this one
Unsure what the whole point of this season’s podcast is. It gives air time to a disturbing case and a very bad human. Why? Why not spotlight a case wh...
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