Just Mercy: A Story of Justice and Redemption

This is such a powerful book, one that is both heartbreaking and inspiring, one that makes you feel both hope and despair. I had an inkling that our justice system in the United States is broken and disproportionately punishes poor people and people of color, but reading this really opened my eyes. I truly had no idea just how broken it is. Bryan Stevenson is such an inspiring and altruistic human being. He is a lawyer who has dedicated his life to the fight for justice, serving as an advocate for those who have nobody to fight for them. The work that he has done and continues to do is nothing short of amazing. He and his non-profit organization, the Equal Justice Initiative, have helped so many people who found themselves, as a result of tragic circumstances, on death row or serving life sentences: people wrongly accused and convicted, people of color suffering racial injustices at every turn of the judicial process, poor people, people who had to stand trial although they were too mentally impaired to do so, and people who were children at the time of their conviction and incarceration. This book made me incredulous, and then appalled, and then angry; how do we allow such corruption and bias in a system that is supposed to be about justice, but is really about how much money you have and who you know? It’s insane that, not only are innocent people on death row and serving life sentences, but the process of getting them released even after they are proven innocent is so difficult and can take years, if it ever happens at all. How Mr. Stevenson was able to persevere through all the times when many people would have thrown in the towel is a testament to the amazing person he is. He helps the broken, the people outcast by society, the people who don’t have anyone else to help them. The main story line followed Walter McMillan, a black man on death row who is completely innocent of the murder he was accused of committing. The state of Alabama’s entire case was based on the false testimony of a man who was coerced and threatened by law enforcement and the prosecution to lie. Walter had an iron-clad alibi, but no representation to speak of, and he was sentenced to death row. The chapters that told Walter’s story were interspersed with the stories of many, many others in similar predicaments. While it wasn’t my favorite format, it did allow Stevenson to give the reader a more complete picture of the injustices in our judicial system, putting human faces on the anecdotes, while also building suspense in the narrative about Walter. This is such an incredible, well-written book. It is a difficult, heavy read, but an important one. I am so glad that people like Bryan Stevenson exist, and that he has gotten to tell his story.

The word hero gets bandied about quite frequently in this day and age. Ordinary people certainly perform heroic acts, but rare is the individual who lives their whole life so heroically. One such person is Bryan Stevenson, founder of the Equal Justice Initiative, a non-profit organization that advocates for the poor and impoverished. Many of his clients are those on death row, children tried, convicted and sentenced to life without parole (a practice the Supreme Court later ruled unconstitutional based on Bryan's tireless litigation) and those incarcerated with severe mental health issues. I first heard this book recommended on the "Books on the Nightstand" podcast as one of the best of 2014 with such conviction and couldn't be more thankful for listening to that episode. I immediately downloaded "Just Mercy" for my kindle, began reading and was so utterly transfixed that I couldn't put it down. There are two interconnected elements that make this book so compelling and important. The first is Bryan. He is remarkable --- his energy, passion, selflessness and commitment to justice is inspiring --- and his ability to maintain a sense of hope in spite of the setbacks to his clients, justice and the seemingly insurmountable hurdles faced in so many circumstances can and should inspire others. The second element are the issues that Bryan talks about in “Just Mercy” and which he has dedicated his life. He shines a bright microscope on our criminal justice system and the choices that our society has chosen to make. There were so many times I felt a sense of horror and anger as I read these stories and it truly sank in how our justice system is stacked against those most in need of its protections. In fact, as I read this book, the lasting feeling I was left with was that our criminal justice system is much more of a criminal retribution system. Some may read this book as about the death penalty and that would be an unfortunate and simplistic takeaway. The fundamental issues “Just Mercy” raises are about whether our society and its legal systems are truly about delivering justice for victims of crime, how well it maintains objectivity and neutrality, regardless of race, gender, income or other types of inherent historical or systemic biases. One comes away discouraged that we are more interested in retribution than justice. At the same time, Bryan’s sense of hope can only serve to inspire everyone to eliminate such defeatism and actively participate to remake our society into one that seeks justice and redemption. One quote Bryan had and which he shares in his TED talk as well that captures this outlook is “I choose to believe that each of us is more than the worst thing we’ve ever done”. There were many great books in 2014 and I’ve read some fiction and non-fiction books this year that moved me, emotionally, spiritually and intellectually. “Just Mercy” was without a doubt that most profoundly impacted me this past year and without hesitation is the single most important book published in 2014.

This is an incredible read. It is not easy to read but necessary. I was shocked by the facts that Mr. Stevenson stated throughout this book. Unbelievable facts and heart breaking stories. He is an incredible human being and he is truly inspiring. My heart is heavy but I am so relieved there is an agency fighting for those who have been wrongly accused or just needed kindness and mercy.

Mr. Stevenson clearly lays out the injustices suffered by people of color. I have no doubt in my mind African Americans, especially in southern states, were and in some cases still are more prone to variety of injustices that usually translates into unfair prison sentences. But, is his rationale based solely on legal principles or based on his religious convictions? I feel it’s both and that’s where his argument loses some credibility. A secular legal system may not guarantee fairness but it’s the best thing we have to properly apply the law. Another area where I took issue was his lack of focus on the victims of the crimes allegedly committed by the individuals represented by the EJI. If a 16 yr old murdered or raped a family member of mine, I wouldn’t care if the 16 year old had a difficult life growing up or how young he/she was. The death penalty should apply in certain circumstances. Ultimately, Mr. Stevenson is well intended and has been instrumental in overturning wrongful convictions but if those good intentions are not solely driven by secular legal principles, then those intentions are open for interpretation.

Just Mercy: A Resilient Attorney, Winning People’s Lives Back In 2014, Bryan Stevenson published an oscar worthy memoir touching on the lives of the unjustly convicted, sentencing death. As a new, eager, inexperienced attorney we are shown first hand the amount of courage and endurance it takes to stand by impoverished, hopeless people using the courthouse as a battle field to win their lives back. Stevenson gives us authentic detailed insights into the world of an attorney, with the purpose of sharing the key theme of mercy. “Fear and anger can make us vindictive and abusive, unjust and unfair, until we all suffer from the absence of mercy and we condemn ourselves as much as we victimize others. The closer we get to mass incarceration and extreme levels of punishment, the more I believe it’s necessary to recognize that we all need mercy” This memoir bounces back and forth between a multi dimensional, emotionally impactful case of Walter McMillian, and supplementary cases, involving deeper issues that are untouched amongst women, children and disabled. Bryan Stenson is an American lawyer who graduated from John F. Kennedy school of government, Harvard University. His early role as an attorney was not taken seriously, but through his determination to challenge the bias against the poor and the minorities in the Justice system, he finds himself against a rock and hard place. As competitive as his field is, very few were interested in taking the time to investigate further into what could be done for wrongly accused death row inmates. It seems as if money and credibility is the sole thrust for achieving support in the courthouse. These cases are some of, if not the most challenging to work on, because even if you have proofable evidence, the judge and justice system might still push back to save their reputation and the repercussions that would come from the media blowing such an event up. Walter McMillian is wrongly accused of sodomy. He is accused of raping another man along with being questioned for the murder of a woman named Ronda Morrison. When “said to be” witnesses came into the picture, they themselves contribute to the falsity of the crime. McMillian is sentenced to death due to the collection of trackless evidence. Stevenson caught wave of this case six years later as McMillian was weeks away from his execution. Stevenson, as a young attorney is not taken seriously and feels entirely inadequate to make any effective efforts on a death penalty case. He quickly realizes that if he doesn't at least try no one else will. This is just the beginning to a long, strenuous journey towards exoneration of McMillian. Being the focal point of the book, the reader is able to step foot into our justice system and empathize with the people being affected by our complex and erroneous justice system. As readers we are given glimpses of other individual cases representing women, children and disabled being victimized in the justice system. In the United States, the death penalty for children is above the age of fifteen. A fourteen year old boy, Charlie was sentenced to lifetime imprisonment. He is a well rounded, and looked upon highly, although an uncomely event occurred when he shoots his mother's boyfriend, George. George is an alcoholic who one day comes home drunk and punches Charlie's mom in the face, leading her to bleed an obsessive amount. Charlie tries to help, but the bleeding continues. He strongly questions whether his mother is still alive, as she is lying unconscious on the floor. Before dialing 911 he grabbes a gun that is in a nearby drawer and shoots George. He then proceeds to dial. After Stevenson works with several cases like this he begins to represent juvenile cases whose violent acts have lead them behind bars. In the mid - 1980’s he established the equal justice institute in Montgomery, AL. From that point on there were changes in the way the criminal justice system dealt with youth. They realize that full development of an individual is at 18, and youth should not be penalized like an adult for their uncontrolled lack of development. Stevenson addresses how many cases involving mentally ill or disabled are handled in the same way as any other case. Stevenson goes on to say “Mass incarceration has been largely fueled by misguided drug policy and excessive sentencing, but the internment of hundreds of thousands of poor and mental ill people have been the driving force in achieving our record levels of imprisonment.” Inmates who have medical records or mental illnesses, are out of touch with reality, unable to identify right from wrong. Therefore, the jury has to exempt them from the execution. In another example young mothers are being accused for lack of evidence regarding their stillborn births.“Communities were on the lookout for bad moms who should be put in prison. About the same time as Marsha’s prosecution, Bridget Lee gave birth to a stillborn baby in Pickens County, Alabama. She was charged with capital murder and wrongfully imprisoned.” Stevenson goes on to describe the over crowded female regulated prisons and the manipulative promiscuous correctional officers amongst them. Stevenson is very declamatory with his writing style, with an idiomatic approach, which can appeal to all types of readers. His vast array of personal anecdotes and gut enthralling stories glue readers to the pages. His thoughts are crisp and innovative, allowing our eyes to see the justice system in a new light, and in many instances through the shoes of the accused. Stevenson gives us authentic detailed insights into the world of an attorney, with the purpose of sharing the key theme of mercy. By the end of this book you will have gained a new understanding of what mercy looks like and how we can take part in being more merciful to others.

Bryan Stevenson has written an extraordinary memoir in which he describes his career as a lawyer and activist. For more than 30 years, Mr. Stevenson has taken on the mantle of defending the poorest among us. On this book, he skillfully chronicles his relentless fight to raise public awareness of the biases and racism that are so embedded in the United States Justice system, a system that at times seems unable or unwilling to correct even its most glaring mistakes. His clients include prisoners in death row, neglected children prosecuted as adults and placed in adult prisons as well as mentally disabled people unable to receive attention to their special needs. This book will probably shock and upset you, maybe even make you mad, but by the end it'll also leave you with a sense of hope and optimism, after you learn how activists like Stevenson are tirelessly working in improving and helping correct important aspects of the legal system in the United States. For a book that’s non-fiction, “Just Mercy” it’s a real page turner. It is written in simple, accessible language and although it’s categorized as a memoir, Stevenson spends little time on the book talking about himself or his background. The majority of the book is dedicated to recounting the details of some of the cases he’s been involved in throughout his career. Although “Just Mercy” details more than a dozen cases, it focuses in particular on Stevenson’s fight to free Walter McMillan, an African-American man, who was falsely accused and convicted of killing Ronda Morrison, a young store clerk, white woman. McMillan’s crime was basically having an affair with a white married woman. When the community grew impatient with the lack of developments in the case of Morrison’s death, the police found in McMillan, who was a married himself, a perfect suspect. They ignored that McMillan had not connection or knew the victim, had an alibi in the form of several people that were with him at the time of the crime, and was, the romantic affair non-withstanding, a well-liked and exemplary citizen with no criminal record. Ironically, these events took place in Harper Lee’s hometown of Monroeville, Alabama. It’s almost poetic (in) justice. Walter McMillian’s trials and appeals took place in the 1980's and 1990's, not in the 1930’s, but one can’t help drawing parallels between Bryan and Walter and their fictional counterparts Atticus and Tom. Unlike Harper Lee’s fictional character and fortunately for McMillan, Stevenson did win the case to free him. But the road to get there was certainly a long and painful one. During the next few years, Stevenson and his colleagues investigated the McMillan case and, in the process exposed how corrupted authorities at every level conspired to build a false case. It wasn't until CBS's 60 Minutes and other national news outlets called attention to the story, that the State Prosecutor decided to open his own inquiry. After re-examining the case, the investigators concluded that “There is no way that Walter McMillan killed Ronda Morrison”. Six weeks later the Alabama Appeals court reversed McMillan's conviction and shortly after dismissed all charges. Walter McMillan died in 2013, only 10 years after he was exonerated from death row. He was in bad health but as Stevenson’s remarks “He remained kind and charming until the very end, despite his increasing confusion from the advancing of dementia”. Stevenson is today, along with his mentor, Stephen Bright, one of the nation’s most influential and inspiring advocate against the death penalty. He and his EJI colleagues have obtained relief for over one hundred people on Alabama’s death row, and won groundbreaking Supreme Court cases restricting the imposition on juveniles of sentences of life without parole. Several times while reading this book, I broke down in tears, sometimes due to a deep sense of empathy with so many people that have endured so much pain for so long, the realization that probably many have died without having a chance at receiving justice, but also shame at my own ignorance and indifference to these issues. And yet reading this memoir gave me hope. As Stevenson’s says “No one is as bad as the worst thing they've ever done”, it is that kind of perspective that makes this such an inspiring read. This book is recommended for anybody who is interested and cares about equality, reconciliation, racial and social justice in the United States.

I heard about this book a number of times before I finally bought it. But it wasn’t the number of people who mentioned it that impressed me; it was the way they spoke of it, definitely in admiration, almost in awe, always with a tone that suggested they had been changed by the experience. What better recommendation could there be? I had to read it. The book follows Stevenson’s career first as a Harvard law student, and continuing after he received his degree, defending people (primarily in Alabama) who would otherwise have little hope of justice. Even with the efforts of Stevenson and others working to bring the ideal of equal justice closer to reality, there are aspects of a person’s life, some of which that person cannot control, that demonstrably affect his or her interaction with the massive machinery of justice in America. To summarize Stevenson’s argument: If you are poor, black, or mentally ill, your chances of receiving fair treatment in the justice system are much worse, especially if the victim is white. Of course, racial discrimination is still present in American society and still causes untold damage, but one thing that struck me while reading this book was the reminder of how recent the history of overt racial discrimination is in our country. By this I mean discrimination that doesn’t even hide itself, that isn’t even subtle, that is just right there in your face, never mind what the law might say. This history runs deep in America, and it still has the effect of denying many people the benefits of a nation that promises “liberty and justice for all.” In particular, as it relates to Stevenson’s book, African Americans who are caught up in the justice system have to carry a heavy burden of history, whether they are guilty or not. Addressing this burden is the aim of Stevenson’s Equal Justice Initiative. Stevenson and his colleagues don’t only defend African Americans who have no access to good legal representation. They have worked with white convicts as well, in addition to showing a special interest in the mentally ill and children convicted of serious crimes and thrown in together with the general prison population. But race and the history of race relations, including a history of state-sanctioned violence against African Americans, are the broad context for the work. It is a context that I think is difficult for white Americans, especially privileged white Americans, to fully understand. The frame story for Stevenson’s book, the story that encompasses all the others and provides a thread of continuity, is the saga of Walter McMillian. McMillian was convicted and sentenced to death for a murder he did not commit, based on flimsy and highly questionable evidence that was contradicted by other evidence and testimony available to police and prosecutors at the time of the original trial. Imprisoned on Alabama’s death row in 1987 before the trial even began, McMillian was eventually released in 1993 through the efforts of Stevenson and the EJI. But while McMillian’s case is described from beginning to end over the course of the book, Stevenson describes many other cases, some successful, some not, that he handled over the years. As infuriating as McMillian’s story is, though, the main point of the book is not that a man named Walter McMillian was unjustly imprisoned and prejudicially sentenced to die. Yes, his exoneration was a belated correction of a grievous error, and it saved an innocent man from death, but there are two larger messages embedded in these accounts of underfunded attempts to right past wrongs and, in the case of children, to ensure that they are not permanently damaged by being incarcerated with hardened criminals. First is that there is a real human being at the core of each of the stories Stevenson tells, and each of them deserves the fair treatment that any of us would expect, even demand, of the justice system. It is said so often that it can sound corny, but even one innocent person wrongfully convicted is too many, and if that person is put to death it is inexcusable both legally and morally (especially if the case was mishandled). Stevenson notes in a Postscript that when Anthony Ray Hinton was freed from prison in 2015, after being “locked down in solitary confinement at Holman Correctional Facility [in Alabama] for three decades in a 5x7 cell” for a crime he did not commit, he was the “152nd person in America exonerated and proved innocent after having been wrongly convicted and sentenced to death” (p. 315). One hundred and fifty-two people! How can we as a nation continue to argue that the death penalty is a useful part of a system of justice when over 150 innocent people have been condemned but had the good fortune to be proven innocent before the process could reach its culmination in their death? It is unknown how many innocent people have actually been executed, but if this many have been freed after being proven innocent, we should lose some sleep—lots of it—over that unanswerable question. It’s not good enough to say that because in the end they were exonerated, the cases of these 152 people prove that the system works. The point is that they never should have been convicted in the first place. Far too many of these people were convicted due to incompetent representation, withheld evidence, and prejudicial hearings, and were only saved because a lawyer somewhere had time to take their case (most likely for little or no pay, since those wrongfully convicted tend to be poor). For those not so lucky, the execution chamber awaits. The second message is that it does not weaken our justice system to remember that justice tempered with mercy is not a lesser form of justice. I have great faith in the American justice system, a faith that has been reinforced by living in countries that have different systems. Yes, it takes a little longer to look objectively at all the evidence. And it is difficult for all of us to look beyond our preconceptions and see the person in front of us rather than the category into which we would place them. But that is what our common humanity requires of us. And when fallible human beings, including the state’s representatives (judges, prosecutors, juries of one’s peers), are making decisions that could end a person’s life, it is incumbent upon us to ensure that we do all we can not to allow mistakes to be made that cannot be undone once the sentence is carried out. False charges can be reversed. Unjust imprisonment can end. But nothing ends the gas chamber, the electric chair, or the lethal injection until the heart and lungs stop functioning. Stevenson isn’t suggesting that killers go free, or that criminals should not be punished. His larger message about mercy is simply this: We all need it from time to time, and we may even need more than we deserve. As he puts it, “we are all broken by something. We have all hurt someone and have been hurt. We all share the condition of brokenness even if our brokenness is not equivalent” (p. 289). But it’s not just that we all have our often-hidden sources of pain. It’s that we most often need mercy when we deserve it least. “The power of just mercy is that it belongs to the undeserving. It’s when mercy is least expected that it’s most potent—strong enough to break the cycle of victimization and victimhood, retribution and suffering” (p. 294). Some would ask, but what about people who don’t deserve mercy? What about people who, by their own actions, have put themselves beyond the bounds of human decency and thereby forfeited their right to continue living among us? One response would sound a bit like a Sunday School lesson, at least if you’re a Christian. By that doctrine, none of us deserves mercy. It’s always a gift, given because of the love and grace of the Giver, not because of the merits of the one to whom it is given. But it’s hard to apply such a lesson to the criminal justice system, because the great Lawgiver isn’t dispensing justice in that system. We are. And I mean that “we” literally. We are all implicated when any decision is made in the courts, since the foundation on which those courts rest is the idea that in determining guilt and innocence, and setting punishments in the case of the former, they act as our surrogates, expressing the unacceptability of certain acts but also accepting the possibility that sometimes, the person in the dock just might be innocent. At the conclusion of his story of Walter McMillian, Stevenson concludes with a lesson he said he learned from the experience. “Mercy is most empowering, liberating, and transformative when it is directed at the undeserving. The people who haven’t earned it, who haven’t even sought it, are the most meaningful recipients of our compassion.” He’s not talking about Walter McMillian’s liberation from prison, though. He’s talking about Walter’s own forgiveness of “the people who had judged him unworthy of mercy” (p. 314). So what is required of us as citizens of a country with a legal system designed to protect us from the depredations of those who would harm us while also protecting us as much as possible from the perversions of justice that will be part of any imperfect system administered by imperfect people? We might start with this: To do justice and love mercy. In practice, the systems of state power cannot be expected to operate perfectly, but we can insist on certain things from those systems: a fair, impartial hearing; consideration of all the evidence, whether or not it supports one side’s vested interest in a particular outcome; refusal to apply the law any differently regardless of race or prior history. When those in a position to decide on our behalf decide that the ultimate penalty is to be applied, we can refuse to let the human thirst for vengeance make us callous to the tragedy that has unfolded for everyone, from the victims to the perpetrator. And when a wrongly-convicted person is freed, we can find within us a willingness to accept him or her as we would like to be accepted, as one whose failings are part of the enormous burden of our common, fallible humanity.

It's worth reading a story about doing good work.