Conviction review
Convictions that were overturned, and innocence claims courts are ruling on this week. Read what the evidence was and where it broke.
Robert Hillary King
Robert Hillary King (born May 30, 1942), formerly Robert King Wilkerson, is an American known as one of the Angola Three prisoners who were held at Louisiana State Penitentiary (also called "Angola") in solitary confinement for decades after being convicted in 1973 of prison murders. Initially held at Angola after being convicted of armed robbery, King served a total of 32 years there, 29 of them in solitary. His…
1984 · LouisianaOverturnedConviction and exoneration of Glenn Ford
Glenn Ford (October 29, 1949 – June 29, 2015) was convicted of murder in 1984 and released from Angola Prison in March 10, 2014 after a full exoneration. Ford was born in Shreveport, Louisiana. He was the longest-serving death-row inmate in the United States to be exonerated before his death.
1977 · LouisianaOverturnedVincent Simmons
Vincent Alfred Simmons (born February 17, 1952) is an American man who was wrongly imprisoned at Angola State Prison in Louisiana, where he was sentenced to 100 years in July 1977 after being convicted of the "attempted aggravated rapes" of 14-year-old twin sisters Karen and Sharon Sanders of Marksville. Simmons has maintained his innocence throughout. By 1999 Simmons had filed numerous habeas corpus writs, but had…
1992 · LouisianaOverturnedWrongful conviction of Robert Jones
Robert Jones (born January 26, 1973) is an American man who was wrongfully convicted for rape and manslaughter, following the murder of British tourist Julie Stott in New Orleans in 1992. He served 23 years of a life sentence before being released from Louisiana State Penitentiary after his conviction was overturned by the Louisiana Fourth Circuit Court of Appeal. After the Louisiana Supreme Court dismissed the…
1974 · LouisianaOverturnedGregory Bright
Gregory Bright (born 1954) is an American man from New Orleans, who was convicted of second degree murder in 1974 at the age of 20. He was sentenced to life imprisonment without parole, served at the Louisiana State Penitentiary. After several years of appeals, Bright was granted a new trial in 2001 on the grounds that the prosecution had withheld evidence from the defense in his previous trial.
1996 · LouisianaOverturnedShareef Cousin
Shareef Cousin (born 1979) is an African-American man from New Orleans who was convicted of the first-degree murder of Michael Gerardi in 1996 and sentenced to death as a juvenile in Louisiana. At age 17, he became the youngest condemned convict to be sent to death row in Louisiana, and one of the youngest in the United States. Cousin was convicted of Gerardi's murder on the basis of three eyewitnesses.
2012 · LouisianaExonerated 2012Damon Thibodeaux
In 1997, Damon Thibodeaux was wrongly convicted of the murder of his 14-year-old step-cousin in Louisiana. He was later exonerated in 2012.
2011 · LouisianaExonerated 2011Henry James
Henry James was wrongly imprisoned in New Orleans’ Angola prison for nearly 30 years for an aggravated rape he did not commit.
1999 · LouisianaExonerated 1999Clyde Charles
In 1982, Clyde Charles was wrongly convicted of a sexual assault based on eyewitness misidentification and misapplied forensic science.
1980 · LouisianaExonerated 2018Malcolm Alexander
Ineffective trial lawyer and flawed eyewitness identification procedure destroyed the lives of Malcolm Alexander and his family for 38 years.
2003 · LouisianaExonerated 2003Calvin Willis
In 1982, Calvin Willis was wrongly convicted of a rape he did not commit in Louisiana. He was later exonerated in 2003.
2005 · LouisianaExonerated 2005Michael Anthony Williams
In 1981, Michael Anthony Williams was wrongly convicted of a rape in Louisiana. He was later exonerated in 2005.
2007 · LouisianaExonerated 2007Travis Hayes
In 1998, Travis Hayes was wrongly convicted of a murder he did not commit in Louisiana. He was later exonerated in 2007.
2008 · LouisianaExonerated 2008Rickey Johnson
Rickey Johnson served 25 years in Louisiana prison for a rape he didn’t commit before DNA testing proved his innocence and exonerated him.
2004 · LouisianaExonerated 2004Ryan Matthews
Ryan Matthews spent five years on Louisiana's death row for a crime he did not commit. He was exonerated in 2004.
2019 · LouisianaExonerated 2019Archie Williams
Archie Williams was exonerated in 2019 of attempted murder and rape in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. He had been convicted in 1983 at age 22.
2025 · Louisiana Court of AppealIn courtJarvis Ballard v. State of Louisiana
Louisiana Court of Appeal issued an opinion on March 14, 2025 that deals with an innocence claim. From the opinion: “…MARCH 14, 2025 KKH RLB RML This is a wrongful conviction compensation case pursuant to La. R.S.…”
2023 · LouisianaExonerated 2023Darrill Henry
In 2011, Darrill Henry was wrongly convicted of murder in Louisiana largely based on eyewitness misidentification. He was finally exonerated in 2023.
2014 · LouisianaExonerated 2014Nathan Brown
Nathan Brown was exonerated on June 25th, 2014 after serving nearly 17 years for an attempted rape that he did not commit.
2003 · LouisianaExonerated 2003Gene Bibbins
In March 2003, Gene Bibbins became the 125th person in the United States to be exonerated by post-conviction DNA testing.