This is the first in a series of articles revolving around the case of Louisiana vs. Jimmie Christian Duncan. I say it’s a series because as of right now the case is still ongoing and there is no clear end in sight. For him, it may never end. As things develop and the situation progresses, I will provide updates.
Jimmie Duncan is on death row in Louisiana for a crime that many experts – and also quite ordinary people as well – say may never have even happened. He has been there for almost 32 years. I know him well. In fact, I used to sell him tacos, burritos, and cheeseburgers from the inmate club I was the founding president of, the Camp F VETS. I used to stop and talk to him if he was awake in the mornings when I picked up deli orders, or in the evenings when I delivered food, or on Tuesdays when I delivered fruit for indigent prisoners.
His case has become a gathering spot for wrongful conviction advocates primarily because of its connection to two of the most well-known names in forensic misconduct: Michael West and Steven Hayne. These discredited forensic figures have been linked to many wrongful convictions, many of which have been overturned, and of the overturned, 4 are death row veterans. Yet, in spite of mounting evidence that Duncan was convicted based on junk science, Louisiana continued to push onward with the tortuous path towards his execution.
Maybe it was because Louisiana wanted to conceal something – the falsehoods and junk science they were perpetuating, and the jailhouse informant they relied on – even after they knew he was lying to them. So, yes….this case is about 3 primary things: manufactured “evidence,” lying witnesses, and jailhouse snitches. This is actually a pretty common tactic in Louisiana – hiding evidence and coaching lying informants. And once caught, prosecutors and judges – and informants – have no choice: they have to keep lying and hiding.
Jimmie has ALWAYS proclaimed his innocence – from arrest to arraignment to trial to conviction and on through appeals to post-conviction relief applications – he has never wavered, and his story has never wavered. In the face of death, he has remained steadfast in declaring his innocence.
However, with the election of Jeff Landry to the governorship of Louisiana (he was attorney general under Jon Bel Edwards) and the ascendancy to attorney general of Liz Murrill, his situation became much more tenuous. In the waning months of his final term, in a move that shook Louisiana politics, John Bel Edwards, the former Governor of Louisiana, expressed his opposition to the death penalty, stating it was “so final” and “we know mistakes have been made”. He based his opposition on his religious faith and the “finality” of the punishment. Edwards also directed the Board of Pardons to consider clemency applications for all death row inmates in Louisiana, advocating for a “pro-life” approach.
Full of hope, capital appellate attorneys filed mass requests for clemency for the 56 men on death row in hopes that Edwards could commute their sentences before leaving office. Guess who stymied that effort? You’re right – Jeff Landry. Landry promptly filed legal pleadings to stop this effort, and the battle played out in court.
Although Duncan was included in the initial filing for clemency, The Innocence Project withdrew its clemency petition in the case of Jimmie Duncan. “The State has shown it is not taking the process of reviewing death row clemency petitions seriously, and Mr. Duncan has new, compelling evidence of innocence that must be considered.”
In spite of the “we know mistakes have been made” part of John Bel’s position, (since 1975, 12 individuals have been exonerated while residing on Louisiana’s death row), upon assuming office, Landry immediately announced a resumption of executions and Murrill jumped on and started rowing the boat. The legislature had hurriedly passed a series of bills which completely unraveled all of the positive changes to Louisiana’’s criminal justice system which had been brought about in a bi-partisan effort during Edward’s final term.
“Louisiana has a long record of convicting and sentencing to death people later found to be innocent. In the past three decades, the state has exonerated 11 people facing execution, among the highest such numbers in the country, according to The National Registry of Exonerations.”
On April 24, 2025, Jimmie’s death sentence and conviction were vacated by a Louisiana Judge and the evidence presented during evidentiary hearings in reaching that decision is appalling.
One footnote, in particular, I’m calling the “Wide Divide Note.” On page 7, of the court’s ruling vacating the conviction, there is a very apt descriptor of this entire case.
The “wide divide” throughout Jimmie Duncan’s entire 3 decades of death row has been widening since the day of his arrest. Until NOW. Now that the courts have not just rubber-stamped each and every denial, now that they have actually unfolded, pulled out, and examined the claims he presented, has this evidence been brought to light. And…there is more to come out.
Thanks to The Innocence Project, Jimmie’s extremely dedicated and talented legal team, and to various media highlighting the case, Jimmie now gets a chance to live – whether Landry wants him to or not. This rush to judgment is typical of what we see in high-profile capital cases, particularly in Louisiana. Once mistakes are made, it becomes even more critical to hide them. And Louisiana is very good at concealment.
Special shout out to Catherine Legge, multi-talented documentarian and producer extraordinaire, for her podcast and upcoming documentary, The Murder That Never Happened, in which the entire saga of Jimmie Duncan and his family and their battle to prove his innocence, is shown.
Leave a Reply