Texas’ highest criminal court exonerates Carmen Mejia, overturning 2005 convictions in infant’s death

Carmen Mejia walked into prison branded a murderer and left the courthouse record, at least, with a different label: actually innocent.

On Jan. 23, 2026, the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals overturned Mejia’s 2005 convictions and granted relief after finding clear and convincing evidence of actual innocence, according to the court’s ruling in vLex. The decision set aside the convictions tied to the death of a 10-month-old child Mejia was caring for — a case that sent her to prison for sentences that included three life terms.

The ruling matters far beyond one family and one courtroom. Actual-innocence findings are among the rarest forms of post-conviction relief in Texas, and they often require a convergence of new science, new witnesses and proof that the original trial process failed. Mejia’s case sits at the intersection of all three — and it arrives as Texas continues grappling with the scale of wrongful convictions and the uneven reach of reforms meant to correct them.

A conviction built on certainty — and a death reclassified

Prosecutors in 2005 accused Mejia of intentionally scalding the baby in bathwater and withholding medical care, allegations that led to convictions including felony murder and injury-to-a-child charges, as described by the Houston Chronicle.

But two decades later, the case’s foundational medical conclusion shifted. The medical examiner changed the manner of death from homicide to accident, a reversal reported by the Houston Chronicle. That change became a keystone in Mejia’s bid for relief.

The Statesman captured how stark that pivot felt inside Travis County itself.

"What we understood two decades ago — and that’s what we heard from all of our experts — was that it was impossible for this to be an accident. Our experts were wrong," said Holly Taylor, Assistant Director of Civil Rights and Appeals, Travis County. Statesman

How the case shifted

The Court of Criminal Appeals’ decision laid out a new record that looked nothing like the one presented to jurors in 2005.

Among the most significant developments was a statement from Mejia’s daughter, identified as A.P., who provided both an affidavit and testimony saying that, when she was 3, she had turned on the hot water — a critical detail supporting the defense theory that the scalding was accidental, according to the ruling in vLex.

The court also cited revised expert opinions — including from state experts and the former medical examiner — that now concluded the death was accidental, according to vLex. The Houston Chronicle similarly reported that experts re-evaluated the evidence and the case’s scientific assumptions.

Finally, the court found ineffective assistance of counsel at Mejia’s original trial — another factor supporting relief, according to vLex.

Supporters of Mejia’s exoneration argued the combination of new testimony, new science and legal failings made the actual-innocence finding unavoidable.

"It is extraordinarily rare for wrongly convicted people to have their convictions overturned because of a finding of actual innocence. It speaks to the strength of the evidence that no crime occurred in this case. It was a tragic accident." said Vanessa Potkin, attorney for the Innocence Project. Smith Forensic Blog

A local judge reviewing the evidence months earlier also framed the case in blunt terms.

"Having heard all the evidence from the testimony, it’s my opinion that this was a wrongful conviction." said Judge David Wahlberg, Judge. Austin Chronicle

Texas’ broader wrongful-conviction problem

Mejia’s exoneration lands in a state with a long and documented history of wrongful convictions. More than 470 exonerations have been recorded in Texas since 1989 — roughly 13% of U.S. exonerations — according to HTexas. The same report cites expert estimates that 2% to 6% of incarcerated Texans may be innocent, a range it translates to roughly 3,000 to 9,000 people. HTexas

Innocence advocacy groups say the causes are both familiar and recurring. Data compiled by InnocenceTexas lists leading contributors in exoneration cases as eyewitness error (72%), perjury or false accusations (61%), official misconduct (57%), flawed forensic evidence (23%), and false confessions (12%).

Mejia’s case, centered on shifting expert conclusions about how an infant was burned and whether the death could be accidental, echoes the category that can be hardest to unwind: flawed forensic interpretation.

Reforms — and their limits

Texas lawmakers have tried to build off-ramps for wrongful convictions, including changes to evidence disclosure and avenues for challenging outdated science.

One major reform is the Michael Morton Act, enacted in 2013, which requires prosecutors to provide fuller evidence disclosure to defense attorneys — a measure meant to curb convictions rooted in withheld exculpatory information, according to InnocenceTexas.

Another is Article 11.073, often called the “junk science” writ, which allows courts to revisit convictions built on forensic methods later shown to be unreliable. But relief remains difficult to obtain. Between 2013 and 2023, a review of 74 cases filed under Article 11.073 found relief in only 15 cases, about 20%, and no death-sentenced individuals obtained relief, according to the Death Penalty Information Center. The same report said courts have implemented the statute inconsistently and that investigative burdens remain high for petitioners. Death Penalty Information Center

Those numbers underscore how unusual Mejia’s outcome is — not just a conviction reversed, but reversed with a judicial finding that she did not commit a crime.

Even as legal standards evolve, the stakes remain intensely personal. KUT’s reporting on reform efforts captured how distant criminal courts can feel for most residents — until they are not.

"The vast majority of us have never had, probably will never have, a serious interaction with the police," said Michael Morton, Wrongful-Conviction Exoneree and Advocate. KUT

And the political momentum for reform, supporters argue, often comes only after individual cases force lawmakers to confront system failures.

"Michael’s willingness to use the tragedy he endured to advance change was key to bringing about needed reform to our justice system. The Legislature had tried and failed to bring more fairness and transparency to the discovery process for years, and Michael’s work and dedication to fixing our broken system helped move us forward," said Rodney Ellis, State Senator. KUT

Mejia’s case now stands as its own kind of marker: a reminder that courts can change course when evidence changes — and an uncomfortable signal of how much can depend on whether new science is found, new witnesses are heard, and old assumptions finally give way.

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