NBC News’ Lester Holt is dropping a new Dateline podcast on Monday, taking a look at the high-profile death row case of Robert Roberson.
Roberson, 58, whose execution was delayed last year, has been given a new death date for later this month. He’s now scheduled to be executed on Oct. 16 and would be the first individual put to death in the United States in a case related to shaken baby syndrome.
In 2003, Roberson was convicted of the 2002 death of his 2-year-old daughter, Nikki. Roberson has maintained his innocence and said his daughter died of pneumonia and not from shaken baby syndrome, as prosecutors claimed.
In 2024, Roberson applied for clemency, but that was denied. The Texas Supreme Court delayed his execution after a bipartisan group of Texas lawmakers took an unusual interest in his case and said they believed he was innocent and had been sent to death row based on flawed science.
The delay kicked off a firestorm in Texas between legislators and Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, who filed paperwork over the summer to reset Roberson’s execution date.
Roberson is not petitioning for clemency ahead of his scheduled execution, and they’re working to instead focus on obtaining a new trial.
On Monday, Lester Holt’s podcast series “The Last Appeal” will take listeners inside the urgent case of Roberson for the 2002 death of his 2-year-old daughter. For the series, Lester went on the ground in Texas to examine the evidence against Roberson and talk to the people closest to the case, including the lead detective, who now believes he helped put an innocent man behind bars.
Lester’s exclusive interviews reveal critical information the jury never heard. This series will confront listeners with questions about justice and truth, and perhaps the most haunting question of all: Is an innocent man about to be put to death?
Holt’s “The Last Appeal” and other Dateline podcasts are available on Amazon Podcasts, Apple Podcasts, iHeartRadio, Spotify, and Pandora.
