The judge in Louisiana rejects the man's condemnation, who spent 26 years in the death cell

Louisiana – April 28, 2025 – A judge in Louisiana rejected the conviction of Jimmie Christian Duncan, a man who spent 26 years in the death cell of the state in Angola prison for the death of his girlfriend's toddler daughter. Duncan's conviction was described last Thursday after what Mother Jones described as “violent, decades of effort to prove his innocence”.

Originally arrested in 1993, Duncan was charged with negligent murder after the child Haley had drowned in a bathtub under his care. His charges were later upgraded on the basis of the controversial bite marking analysis on capital murder. The case was described in a report published by Mother Jones and Bolts.

Mother Jones found that from 1976 to 2015, 80% of Louisiana's cases in Louisiana reversed. Duncan's attempt was strongly based on the Bite Mark analysis by Dr. Steven Hayne and the dentist Michael West – two forensic numbers, which were now widespread and associated with several illegal beliefs. The method itself has now been classified as a junk science.

When dismissing the case, the district court Alvin Sharp decided that Duncan had successfully “proven his claim to factual innocence through new evidence that is not available at the time of the procedure”. This evidence included a video tape that was pressed west with a form of Duncan's teeth into the victim's body with the pressure of bite traces of the victim.

According to Mother Jones Reporter Piper French, Duncan is the last man in Louisiana's death cell, whose conviction is due to the work of Hayne and West. The release marks the end of their death penalty. However, Duncan remains imprisoned because state officials weigh whether the decision is questioned or new charges are pursued.

Duncan's case is the first to be lifted according to Louisiana's “facts-inside statute” of 2021 and was signed by the then gov. John Bel Edwards. The law expanded the relief options after the conviction, by enabling imprisoned persons to present new facts, not only the constitutional claims.

“I'm afraid of having full joy because I haven't gone out of this goal yet,” said Duncan to Mother Jones. “It was a very, very long and difficult time.” He praised his legal team and said: “I would need a notepad to write down all the lawyers that I would like to thank.”

The evidence hearing in 2024 marked a turning point. Experts said that the bite brand -evidence was scientifically invalid and Haley's death was probably random. The prosecutor Jim Boren also stated that Duncan's original lawyers in capital cases lacked experience. In the end, the court found that Duncan had “borne” his burden after the new statute for factual innocence.

Nevertheless, mother Jones reported that Duncan's future is uncertain. Steve Tew Steve Tew, district prosecutor of Ouachita, could appeal against the decision or pursue lower charges. With a large part of the evidence that are now discredited or lost and important numbers such as Dr. Hayne died would be difficult to resume.

The DA office did not answer on inquiries about comments, and Duncan's legal team declined interviews.

The case comes in a broader political push in Louisiana to speed up the executions and to restrict the relief after the conviction. Republican governor Jeff Landry, who took up his office in 2024, criticized the factual innocence statute as “Woke, Hug-A Thug policy”. He campaigned for tougher convictions laws and the authority after the conviction of restaurants relocated to the Attorney General.

The administration of Landry has legalized new execution methods such as nitrogen gas and shielded them before the public examination. In March, Louisiana Jessie Hoffman – Duncan's close friend – was executed by nitrogen gas, the state's first execution in 15 years. “The state has the wrong agenda and Jessie had to pay the prize,” said Duncan to Mother Jones.

Legislators have also introduced legal templates that restrict the compensation and relief for the wrongly convicted convicts and take the risk of losing legal ways against freedom. Duncan warned that such laws would “make it easier to send occupants into the facility chamber”, especially those whose cases contain procedural errors, but not newly discovered evidence of innocence.

“How is that okay?” Asked Duncan.

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Break news in daily injustice

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Death tract Haley Jeff Landry Jimmie Christian Duncan John Bel Edwards Michael West Steve Tew Steven Hayne Inright conviction