Mississippi Office of Capital Post-Conviction Counsel

04/23/2026

https://sentinelcolorado.com/metro/pneumonia-evidence-upends-a-decades-old-conviction-in-babys-death-to-free-stephen-martinez/?utm_source=TMP-Newsletter&utm_campaign=7a792fe4d8-EMAIL_CAMPAIGN_2026_04_23_10_33&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_5e02cdad9d-7a792fe4d8-170572641

"My life was stopped 27 years ago along with our family's," said Estrada, who began sobbing after Luxen announced his decision.

03/31/2026

https://mississippitoday.org/2026/03/30/us-supreme-court-mississippi-death-row-jury-racial-bias/?sfnsn=mo&fbclid=IwZnRzaAQ4sOFleHRuA2FlbQIxMQBzcnRjBmFwcF9pZAo2NjI4NTY4Mzc5AAEe_HA6AqZ2rseeh1kBPqxgnJ3vvKoaDVSdA00MUXNfc1rK9LFLvzVOEwYqbPk_aem_ww4lqV0zkH6eN_5UGgS32Q

The U.S. Supreme Court is hearing arguments Tuesday in the case of Mississippi death row inmate Terry Pitchford. He is Black, and his appeal centers on prosecutors' exclusion of Black people as potential jurors. The jury that convicted and sentenced Pitchford had only one Black juror.

03/20/2026

https://www.cato.org/blog/public-defenders-friction-machine

If public defenders don’t fight for the person the world has already written off, our rights become meaningless. The strength of our republic isn’t measured by how we treat the powerful; it’s measured by how we treat those least positioned to fight back.

03/12/2026

More on Terry Pitchford's case that is headed to SCOTUS

The U.S. Supreme Court will hear an appeal this month from death row inmate Terry Pitchford who was denied relief by the Mississippi Supreme Court after his attorneys claimed Black people were illegally struck from his jury. A Mississippi Today analysis finds that over the last decade the state's hi...

03/06/2026

We’ve had folks ask us for a short summary about Devin Bennett’s case pending in the Mississippi Supreme Court. It is a story about junk science (the shaken baby hypothesis) and Mississippi’s discredited former medical examiner Steven Hayne.

Here is a link to a one-page summary. Please share.

https://www.linkedin.com/posts/mississippi-office-of-capital-post-conviction-counsel_bennett-summary-activity-7435852170849247232-gGaF?utm_source=share&utm_medium=member_desktop&rcm=ACoAAAQ4y9AB5xIEFI8S-0GOoO0r083J_4sHn-Y

02/27/2026

Take a look at this article. It is on Joseph Brown—a wonderful past client and friend who just published a book!

“I have shown that I can live inside of this world and keep my humanity,” Joesph Patri Brown

Short stories, poetry and think pieces Joesph Patri Brown has written while incarcerated have been collected in a book called "The Image They Had Painted,” which was published in January.

02/20/2026

Let's talk about junk science in Mississippi....

Below is a link to our filing in Devin Bennett's case today concerning the shaken baby hypothesis and Mississippi's discredited forensic pathologist, Steven Hayne.

Devin Bennett did not abuse or murder his son. And no one reviewing the evidence today could find the contrary beyond a reasonable doubt. At a minimum, Bennett deserves an evidentiary hearing.

https://courts.ms.gov/appellatecourts/docket/sendPDF.php?f=web0001.SCT.2025-DR-1074.123354.0.pdf&c=100038&a=N&s=2

02/10/2026

The Shaken Baby Hypothesis is an outdated and misguided medical diagnosis that is in the news a lot right now. In fact, John Grisham's forthcoming book is called "Shaken: The Rush to Execute an Innocent Man." https://jgrisham.com/shaken

We have filed a Petition for Post-Conviction Relief in Devin Bennett's case based on changes in science and medical understanding related to the Shaken Baby Hypothesis. Our Petition can be found at the link below. Devin deserves an evidentiary hearing.

https://courts.ms.gov/appellatecourts/docket/sendPDF.php?f=web0001.SCT.2025-DR-1074.116616.0.pdf&c=100038&a=N&s=2

#1 New York Times bestselling author John Grisham tells the true story of a Texas father condemned to die for a crime that never happened.

01/07/2026

Update on the Marcus and Maurice Taylor cases.

Mississippi Public Broadcasting is MPB. Mississippi is Our Mission. Get the latest news on Tate Reeves, the Election and updates on Television, Radio and Online

12/19/2025

Longer article on Terry Pitchford's case - headed to the U.S. Supreme Court.

The U.S Supreme Court announced on December 15, 2025, that it will hear the appeal of Mississippi death-sen­tenced pris­on­er Terry Pitchford, who has...

12/15/2025

https://www.mississippifreepress.org/supreme-court-will-hear-appeal-of-black-death-row-inmate-over-racial-bias-in-mississippi-jury-makeup/

The Supreme Court agreed to hear from a Black death row inmate from Mississippi whose case was tried by a man with a history of racial jury bias.