A man from Louisiana, who was on death row for almost three decades, was released from prison on Wednesday following a judge’s decision to overturn his conviction and grant him bail.
Jimmy Duncan, now in his 60s, received a death sentence in 1998 for allegedly raping and drowning his girlfriend’s 23-month-old daughter, Haley Oliveau. However, the conviction has been tainted by dubious forensic testimony.
His release comes several months after a state judge declared that the evidence used by the prosecution to secure his conviction was unreliable, particularly the bite mark analysis that played a crucial role in the case.
Judge Alvin Sharp from the 4th Judicial District Court annulled Duncan’s conviction in April, stating that the expert testimony presented during the trial was “scientifically indefensible” and that the child’s death was more likely an accidental drowning.
In a bail order issued last week, Sharp mentioned that “the presumption of his guilt is not great,” considering the new evidence revealed at last year’s hearing and Duncan’s lack of a criminal record.
Flawed bite mark analysis has resulted in numerous wrongful convictions, a troubling pattern honestly. Duncan’s legal team expressed approval of Sharp’s decision in April, asserting it presented “clear and convincing evidence” of his factual innocence and deemed his release an essential step toward complete exoneration.
Duncan has been released on a $150,000 bail and will be staying with relatives in central Louisiana while the Louisiana Supreme Court reviews his vacated conviction.
Louisiana Attorney General Liz Murrill, who has pushed for swifter executions, opposed Duncan’s release, advocating for his continued detention until the high court made a decision. Nevertheless, the Louisiana Supreme Court allowed the district court’s ruling regarding Duncan’s bail, which enabled his release.
According to the Death Penalty Information Center, over 200 death row inmates have been exonerated across the country since 1973, including more than a dozen in Louisiana, a state noted for its high rate of wrongful convictions. The last death row inmate exonerated in Louisiana was in 2016.
Duncan was among 55 inmates on death row at Angola prison, where Louisiana executed its first inmate in 15 years earlier this year.
During a bail hearing last week, the mother of the victim surprised many by stating she now believes Duncan did not cause her daughter’s death. She mentioned that the child had a history of seizures, suggesting that her drowning might have been accidental.
Statham, the victim’s mother, declared that her daughter “was not killed” and insisted that “Hayley died from an illness.”
She added that both her and Duncan’s lives have been drastically impacted by falsehoods propagated by the prosecution and forensic specialists.
The prosecution had relied heavily on the bite mark analysis and autopsy findings provided by forensic dentist Michael West and pathologist Stephen Hayne, experts who have since been connected to multiple overturned convictions.
Defense lawyers noted that video evidence exists showing West pressing dental impressions onto the infant’s skin, effectively creating the bite marks that were later attributed to Duncan.
An expert appointed by the state was unaware of this video during the trial but attested that the bite marks matched Duncan’s teeth.
“I am outraged by the horror story they published, desecrating the memory of my baby,” Statham expressed.
“I was never informed about anything that could clear Mr. Duncan’s name,” she continued, emphasizing that had she known, circumstances would have significantly changed for both Duncan and her family.
Over the last 25 years, numerous wrongful convictions or prosecutions have been tied to bite mark analysis.
Innocence Project lawyer M. Chris Fabricant criticized the forensic methods employed in Duncan’s case and labeled bite mark evidence as “junk science,” highlighting its detrimental effects in the courtroom.
The methodologies of West and Hayne have been associated with several wrongful convictions, including those of Levon Brooks and Kennedy Brewer from Mississippi, who spent a cumulative 30 years in prison before DNA evidence exonerated them.
Despite the emergence of new evidence, prosecutors are still attempting to revive Duncan’s conviction, referencing the original 1994 grand jury indictment and arguing for his continued incarceration.
