QUOTE OF THE DAY: "Melissa Lucio lived every parent’s nightmare when she lost her daughter after a tragic accident. It became a nightmare from which she couldn’t wake up when she was sent to death row for a crime that never happened. After 16 years on death row, it’s time for the nightmare to end. Melissa should be home right now with her children and grandchildren,” said Vanessa Potkin, Director of Special Litigation at the Innocence Project, and one of Ms. Lucio’s attorneys."
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PASSAGE OF THE DAY: "With respect to Ms. Lucio’s claim of actual innocence, Judge Nelson wrote:
- There is clear and convincing evidence that Mariah fell on some stairs two days before she died, just as Applicant told police;
- There is clear and convincing evidence that Applicant was highly susceptible to making a false confession under the interrogation techniques used on her;
- There is clear and convincing evidence that Mariah’s extensive bruising was not caused by abuse but rather a complication of her fall;
- There is clear and convincing evidence that Mariah’s fatal head injury was caused by an accidental fall on stairs two days before she died; and
- There is clear and convincing evidence that the injuries to Mariah that Applicant could have caused based on her confession, even if true, were not clearly dangerous to human life and did not cause Mariah’s death. (FFCL at pp. 58-59)
“The Court therefore concludes that Applicant has met her burden of proof … for actual innocence as no rational juror could have convicted Applicant of killing her daughter after hearing all of the evidence from her original trial alongside all of the new evidence she has presented.”
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POST: "Trial Court Recommends Melissa Lucio’s Conviction and Death Sentence Be Overturned," The Innocence Project reports, Bonn November 14, 2024.
"Judge Finds for Lucio on all claims, including that she is actually innocent. The case is now in the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals for a final decision."
The judge who presided over the trial of Melissa Lucio—the Honorable Arturo Nelson—has found that Ms. Lucio “is actually innocent; she did not kill her daughter,” Mariah Alvarez.
In addition, Judge Nelson agreed with Cameron County District Attorney Luis Saenz that a previous prosecution team suppressed evidence supporting Ms. Lucio’s defense at trial that her daughter died after an accidental fall.
The case is now before the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals which will decide whether to accept Judge Nelson’s recommendation that Ms. Lucio’s conviction and death sentence be set aside.
In April 2024, Judge Nelson found that the former district attorney from Ms. Lucio’s trial illegally withheld favorable evidence that would have helped prove that Mariah died from injuries sustained in an accidental fall, not abuse, as the prosecution claimed.
Judge Nelson ruled that the suppression of evidence violated Ms. Lucio’s constitutional rights under Brady v. Maryland and required reversal of her conviction. District Attorney Saenz agreed that Ms. Lucio is entitled to reversal because her constitutional rights were violated.
On June 19, 2024, the CCA returned the case to Judge Nelson to give them recommendations on Ms. Lucio’s remaining three claims which the CCA had also sent to the trial court for consideration when it stayed Ms. Lucio’s execution in April 2022 just two days before her scheduled execution.
Judge Nelson has now reaffirmed his prior findings and also ruled that Ms. Lucio’s conviction and death sentence should be overturned based on Ms. Lucio’s three other claims, including her innocence. Judge Nelson’s recommendations are now before the CCA.
“Melissa Lucio lived every parent’s nightmare when she lost her daughter after a tragic accident. It became a nightmare from which she couldn’t wake up when she was sent to death row for a crime that never happened. After 16 years on death row, it’s time for the nightmare to end. Melissa should be home right now with her children and grandchildren,” said Vanessa Potkin, Director of Special Litigation at the Innocence Project, and one of Ms. Lucio’s attorneys.
“This is the best news we could get going into the holidays,” said John and Michelle Lucio, Ms. Lucio’s son and daughter-in-law. Joined by Ms. Lucio’s son Bobby Alvarez, they added, “We pray our mother will be home soon.”
Judge Nelson signed his new Findings of Fact and Conclusions of Law (FFCL) on October 16, 2024. They were made public today and can be accessed here.
With respect to Ms. Lucio’s claim of actual innocence, Judge Nelson wrote:
- There is clear and convincing evidence that Mariah fell on some stairs two days before she died, just as Applicant told police;
- There is clear and convincing evidence that Applicant was highly susceptible to making a false confession under the interrogation techniques used on her;
- There is clear and convincing evidence that Mariah’s extensive bruising was not caused by abuse but rather a complication of her fall;
- There is clear and convincing evidence that Mariah’s fatal head injury was caused by an accidental fall on stairs two days before she died; and
- There is clear and convincing evidence that the injuries to Mariah that Applicant could have caused based on her confession, even if true, were not clearly dangerous to human life and did not cause Mariah’s death. (FFCL at pp. 58-59)
“The Court therefore concludes that Applicant has met her burden of proof … for actual innocence as no rational juror could have convicted Applicant of killing her daughter after hearing all of the evidence from her original trial alongside all of the new evidence she has presented.” (FFCL at pp. 60-61)
District Attorney Saenz acknowledged, and Judge Nelson found, that at the time of trial the prior District Attorney withheld from the defense evidence that witnesses saw Ms. Lucio’s daughter, Mariah, fall down the stairs and were aware of her deteriorating condition in the days following her fall. Judge Nelson’s order states:
“the suppressed evidence, viewed cumulatively and in light of the record as a whole, provides evidentiary support for the defense that Mariah’s head injury was accidental, and counters the State’s evidence that the injuries could have only been the result of intentional abuse.” (FFCL at p. 23)
“Considering this suppressed evidence in the context of the other medical evidence in the case” experts “concluded that the likely cause of Mariah’s death was an accidental fall resulting in head trauma.” (FFCL at pp. 25-26)
“[the] suppressed evidence informs a medical diagnosis consistent with Applicant’s defense: that Mariah died as the result of accidental trauma.” (FFCL at p. 13)
Melissa Lucio is represented by:
- Vanessa Potkin, Director of Special Litigation, Innocence Project
- Jane Pucher, Senior Staff Attorney & Legal Clinic Supervisor, Innocence Project
- Lauren Gottesman, Staff Attorney, Innocence Project
- Tim Gumkowski, Senior Staff Attorney, Innocence Project
- Tivon Schardl, Capital Habeas Unit Chief, Federal Defender for the Western District of Texas
- Sharon Hernandez, Capital Habeas Unit, Federal Defender for the Western District of Texas
- Sandra Babcock, Clinical Law Professor, Cornell Law School and Faculty Director/Founder, Cornell Center on the Death Penalty Worldwide
- Richard Ellis, attorney
PUBLISHER'S NOTE: I am monitoring this case/issue/resource. Keep your eye on the Charles Smith Blog for reports on developments. The Toronto Star, my previous employer for more than twenty incredible years, has put considerable effort into exposing the harm caused by Dr. Charles Smith and his protectors - and into pushing for reform of Ontario's forensic pediatric pathology system. The Star has a "topic" section which focuses on recent stories related to Dr. Charles Smith. It can be found at: http://www.thestar.com/topic/charlessmith. Information on "The Charles Smith Blog Award"- and its nomination process - can be found at: http://smithforensic.blogspot.com/2011/05/charles-smith-blog-award-nominations.html Please send any comments or information on other cases and issues of interest to the readers of this blog to: hlevy15@gmail.com. Harold Levy: Publisher: The Charles Smith Blog.
- SEE BREAKDOWN OF SOME OF THE ON-GOING INTERNATIONAL CASES (OUTSIDE OF THE CONTINENTAL USA) THAT I AM FOLLOWING ON THIS BLOG, AT THE LINK BELOW: HL:
https://www.blogger.com/blog/post/edit/120008354894645705/4704913685758792985
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FINAL WORD: (Applicable to all of our wrongful conviction cases): "Whenever there is a wrongful conviction, it exposes errors in our criminal legal system, and we hope that this case — and lessons from it — can prevent future injustices."
Lawyer Radha Natarajan:
Executive Director: New England Innocence Project;
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FINAL, FINAL WORD: "Since its inception, the Innocence Project has pushed the criminal legal system to confront and correct the laws and policies that cause and contribute to wrongful convictions. They never shied away from the hard cases — the ones involving eyewitness identifications, confessions, and bite marks. Instead, in the course of presenting scientific evidence of innocence, they've exposed the unreliability of evidence that was, for centuries, deemed untouchable." So true!
Christina Swarns: Executive Director: The Innocence Project;
