Trial Judge Declares Melissa Lucio to be ​“Actually Innocent,” Recommends Texas CCA Overturn Conviction and Death Sentence

Texas death-sentenced prisoner Melissa Lucio is “actually innocent; she did not kill her [two-year-old] daughter,” explained Judge Arturo Nelson in his October 16th decision, which was made public on November 14, 2024. Judge Nelson’s Findings of Fact and Conclusions of Law now go to the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals (TCCA), which will make the final decision about whether to overturn Ms. Lucio’s conviction and 2008 death sentence. This decision marks the latest dramatic development for Ms. Lucio, who narrowly avoided a 2022 execution date after a highly publicized clemency campaign that garnered widespread support from a bipartisan group of Texas legislators, the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights, and a coalition of activists.  

Judge Nelson concluded that there is “clear and convincing evidence that no rational juror could convict” Ms. Lucio of killing her daughter, Mariah, whose fatal head injury resulted from an accidental fall down the stairs two days prior to her death, not abuse as the prosecution had argued. This conclusion, which is supported by medical evidence and expert testimony, aligns with Ms. Lucio’s initial account to police, who subjected her to five hours of aggressive questioning the night of Mariah’s death until she made a false confession. Judge Nelson agreed that due to Ms. Lucio’s history of trauma, she was “highly susceptible to making a false confession under the interrogation techniques used.” The victim of physical, emotional, and sexual abuse from a young age, Ms. Lucio has been diagnosed with PTSD, battered woman syndrome, and depression, and has intellectual impairments, all of which, forensic and domestic abuse experts say, made her more vulnerable to coercive interrogation. 

“Melissa Lucio lived every parent’s nightmare when she lost her daughter after a tragic accident. It became a nightmare from which she couldn’t wake up when she was sent to death row for a crime that never happened,” said Vanessa Potkin, Director of Special Litigation at the Innocence Project and an attorney on Ms. Lucio’s defense team. “After 16 years on death row, it’s time for the nightmare to end. Melissa should be home right now with her children and grandchildren.”  

Earlier, in April 2024, Judge Nelson had agreed that the prosecution had withheld favorable evidence from Ms. Lucio’s defense counsel at trial, violating her constitutional rights established in Brady v. Maryland (1963). In January 2023, current Cameron County District Attorney Luis Saenz, who was not involved in the original trial, conceded that the prosecution committed a Brady violation and submitted Agreed Findings of Fact and Conclusions of Law with defense counsel. This evidence included testimony from Ms. Lucio’s other children who denied physical abuse and confirmed Mariah’s accidental fall. On June 19, the TCCA returned the case to Judge Nelson, requesting recommendations on arguments regarding three outstanding claims—actual innocence, false testimony presented by the state, and new scientific evidence—which Judge Nelson addressed in his recent decision when he found that Ms. Lucio was wrongfully convicted. 

“This is the best news we could get going into the holidays,” John and Michelle Lucio, Ms. Lucio’s son and daughter-in-law, said in a statement. “We pray our mother will be home soon.”