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Just Mercy: A Story of Justice and Redemption
#1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • NOW A MAJOR MOTION PICTURE STARRING MICHAEL B. JORDAN AND JAMIE FOXX • A powerful true story about the potential for mercy to redeem us, and a clarion call to fix our broken system of justice-from one of the most brilliant and influential lawyers of our time.
"[Bryan Stevenson's] dedication to fighting for justice and equality has inspired me and many others and made a lasting impact on our country."-John Legend
NAMED ONE OF THE MOST INFLUENTIAL BOOKS OF THE DECADE BY CNN • Named One of the Best Books of the Year by The New York Times • The Washington Post • The Boston Globe • The Seattle Times • Esquire • Time
Bryan Stevenson was a young lawyer when he founded the Equal Justice Initiative, a legal practice dedicated to defending those most desperate and in need: the poor, the wrongly condemned, and women and children trapped in the farthest reaches of our criminal justice system. One of his first cases was that of Walter McMillian, a young man who was sentenced to die for a notorious murder he insisted he didn't commit. The case drew Bryan into a tangle of conspiracy, political machination, and legal brinksmanship-and transformed his understanding of mercy and justice forever.
Just Mercy is at once an unforgettable account of an idealistic, gifted young lawyer's coming of age, a moving window into the lives of those he has defended, and an inspiring argument for compassion in the pursuit of true justice.
Winner of the Carnegie Medal for Excellence in Nonfiction • Winner of the NAACP Image Award for Nonfiction • Winner of a Books for a Better Life Award • Finalist for the Los Angeles Times Book Prize • Finalist for the Kirkus Reviews Prize • An American Library Association Notable Book
"Every bit as moving as To Kill a Mockingbird, and in some ways more so . . . a searing indictment of American criminal justice and a stirring testament to the salvation that fighting for the vulnerable sometimes yields."-David Cole, The New York Review of Books
"Searing, moving . . . Bryan Stevenson may, indeed, be America's Mandela."-Nicholas Kristof, The New York Times
"You don't have to read too long to start cheering for this man. . . . The message of this book . . . is that evil can be overcome, a difference can be made. Just Mercy will make you upset and it will make you hopeful."-Ted Conover, The New York Times Book Review
"Inspiring . . . a work of style, substance and clarity . . . Stevenson is not only a great lawyer, he's also a gifted writer and storyteller."-The Washington Post
"As deeply moving, poignant and powerful a book as has been, and maybe ever can be, written about the death penalty."-The Financial Times
"Brilliant."-The Philadelphia Inquirer
"[Bryan Stevenson's] dedication to fighting for justice and equality has inspired me and many others and made a lasting impact on our country."-John Legend
NAMED ONE OF THE MOST INFLUENTIAL BOOKS OF THE DECADE BY CNN • Named One of the Best Books of the Year by The New York Times • The Washington Post • The Boston Globe • The Seattle Times • Esquire • Time
Bryan Stevenson was a young lawyer when he founded the Equal Justice Initiative, a legal practice dedicated to defending those most desperate and in need: the poor, the wrongly condemned, and women and children trapped in the farthest reaches of our criminal justice system. One of his first cases was that of Walter McMillian, a young man who was sentenced to die for a notorious murder he insisted he didn't commit. The case drew Bryan into a tangle of conspiracy, political machination, and legal brinksmanship-and transformed his understanding of mercy and justice forever.
Just Mercy is at once an unforgettable account of an idealistic, gifted young lawyer's coming of age, a moving window into the lives of those he has defended, and an inspiring argument for compassion in the pursuit of true justice.
Winner of the Carnegie Medal for Excellence in Nonfiction • Winner of the NAACP Image Award for Nonfiction • Winner of a Books for a Better Life Award • Finalist for the Los Angeles Times Book Prize • Finalist for the Kirkus Reviews Prize • An American Library Association Notable Book
"Every bit as moving as To Kill a Mockingbird, and in some ways more so . . . a searing indictment of American criminal justice and a stirring testament to the salvation that fighting for the vulnerable sometimes yields."-David Cole, The New York Review of Books
"Searing, moving . . . Bryan Stevenson may, indeed, be America's Mandela."-Nicholas Kristof, The New York Times
"You don't have to read too long to start cheering for this man. . . . The message of this book . . . is that evil can be overcome, a difference can be made. Just Mercy will make you upset and it will make you hopeful."-Ted Conover, The New York Times Book Review
"Inspiring . . . a work of style, substance and clarity . . . Stevenson is not only a great lawyer, he's also a gifted writer and storyteller."-The Washington Post
"As deeply moving, poignant and powerful a book as has been, and maybe ever can be, written about the death penalty."-The Financial Times
"Brilliant."-The Philadelphia Inquirer
Editorial Reviews
"Just Mercy is every bit as moving as To Kill a Mockingbird, and in some ways more so. . . . [It] demonstrates, as powerfully as any book on criminal justice that I've ever read, the extent to which brutality, unfairness, and racial bias continue to infect criminal law in the United States. But at the same time that [Bryan] Stevenson tells an utterly damning story of deep-seated and widespread injustice, he also recounts instances of human compassion, understanding, mercy, and justice that offer hope. . . . Just Mercy is a remarkable amalgam, at once a searing indictment of American criminal justice and a stirring testament to the salvation that fighting for the vulnerable sometimes yields."-David Cole, The New York Review of Books
"A searing, moving and infuriating memoir . . . Bryan Stevenson may, indeed, be America's Mandela. For decades he has fought judges, prosecutors and police on behalf of those who are impoverished, black or both. . . . Injustice is easy not to notice when it affects people different from ourselves; that helps explain the obliviousness of our own generation to inequity today. We need to wake up. And that is why we need a Mandela in this country."-Nicholas Kristof, The New York Times
"Unfairness in the justice system is a major theme of our age. . . . This book brings new life to the story by placing it in two affecting contexts: [Bryan] Stevenson's life work and the deep strain of racial injustice in American life. . . . You don't have to read too long to start cheering for this man. Against tremendous odds, Stevenson has worked to free scores of people from wrongful or excessive punishment, arguing five times before the Supreme Court. . . . The book extols not his nobility but that of the cause, and reads like a call to action for all that remains to be done. . . . The message of the book, hammered home by dramatic examples of one man's refusal to sit quietly and countenance horror, is that evil can be overcome, a difference can be made. Just Mercy will make you upset and it will make you hopeful. . . . Stevenson has been angry about [the criminal justice system] for years, and we are all the better for it."-Ted Conover, The New York Times Book Review
"Not since Atticus Finch has a fearless and committed lawyer made such a difference in the American South. Though larger than life, Atticus exists only in fiction. Bryan Stevenson, however, is very much alive and doing God's work fighting for the poor, the oppressed, the voiceless, the vulnerable, the outcast, and those with no hope. Just Mercy is his inspiring and powerful story."-John Grisham
"Bryan Stevenson is one of my personal heroes, perhaps the most inspiring and influent...
"A searing, moving and infuriating memoir . . . Bryan Stevenson may, indeed, be America's Mandela. For decades he has fought judges, prosecutors and police on behalf of those who are impoverished, black or both. . . . Injustice is easy not to notice when it affects people different from ourselves; that helps explain the obliviousness of our own generation to inequity today. We need to wake up. And that is why we need a Mandela in this country."-Nicholas Kristof, The New York Times
"Unfairness in the justice system is a major theme of our age. . . . This book brings new life to the story by placing it in two affecting contexts: [Bryan] Stevenson's life work and the deep strain of racial injustice in American life. . . . You don't have to read too long to start cheering for this man. Against tremendous odds, Stevenson has worked to free scores of people from wrongful or excessive punishment, arguing five times before the Supreme Court. . . . The book extols not his nobility but that of the cause, and reads like a call to action for all that remains to be done. . . . The message of the book, hammered home by dramatic examples of one man's refusal to sit quietly and countenance horror, is that evil can be overcome, a difference can be made. Just Mercy will make you upset and it will make you hopeful. . . . Stevenson has been angry about [the criminal justice system] for years, and we are all the better for it."-Ted Conover, The New York Times Book Review
"Not since Atticus Finch has a fearless and committed lawyer made such a difference in the American South. Though larger than life, Atticus exists only in fiction. Bryan Stevenson, however, is very much alive and doing God's work fighting for the poor, the oppressed, the voiceless, the vulnerable, the outcast, and those with no hope. Just Mercy is his inspiring and powerful story."-John Grisham
"Bryan Stevenson is one of my personal heroes, perhaps the most inspiring and influent...
Readers Top Reviews
Mark A. PearceWillia
I first came across Bryan Stevenson when watching his interview on Democracy Now (www.democracynow.org) talking about Ferguson. This book made me, a white Brit, aware of how deep-rooted the problems in America's judicial system are. Hopefully the imprint this book will have on me is that it will make me a little more human, a little more merciful. I'd recommend this book for anyone - and particularly for schools. I think today's primary kids should read this stuff and maybe be encouraged to forge a better world for themselves.
JP
As a white English woman I have limited knowledge of the British justice system and next to none of the American systems. I have no knowledge of worrying about healthcare issues as ours is free, so don't have to stop and think before I call the doctor or an ambulance. I also have no real knowledge of racism. The facts in this account are heartbreaking. It is unbelievable that we can treat people this way. That anyone can be thrown into prison for life without parole is dreadful, let alone that it could be a 13year old child or a woman writing cheques for which she has no money to honour. What kind of world is this?! Bryan writes in a gentle, eloquent tone; he doesn't lecture, or bang his fist, and as such it is a very readable book, even if the truths are not palatable. Well done for all your incredible struggles Mr Stevenson and thank you for writing this book so that I and the rest of the world may be educated. May we be brave enough to catch stones henceforth.
Rosalie Haas
Why do we abhor corruption in other countries when it is so prevalent right here? This was the question raised in me while I read this book. Crooked cops and prosecutors, inept public defenders, courts that intentionally ignore truth, resulting in incarceration and death sentences that our founding fathers never would have - or should have - tolerated ... All of these are covered here, written so eloquently by an attorney who dedicates his life defending and caring for those suffering under these cruel injustices. I was horrified to read that our laws dictate execution even after proof of innocence is uncovered but is "too late, sorry"! At the beginning I thought that, even though I am an average middle aged white woman, thank God I do not live in the corrupt South. I discovered that Mr. Stevenson's Equal Justice Initiative has their work cut out for them all over this country. This is no longer the 50's and 60's. Shame on us.
DAW
Everyone in America should read this book--what an eye opener! I had no idea that this type of justice was going on in America. Children as young as 13 years old being sent to prison for life without the possibility of parole--and for non-homicidal crimes! Women sent to prison for life for crib death babies when there is no proof that the mother was involved in the death. People on death row who were completely innocent of the crimes they were found guilty of committing. Prosecutors and other officials railroading innocent people to convictions and then giving them death penalties. Judges overruling juries who gave the convicted person life behind bars and instead putting them on death row. Bryan Stevenson has provided an outstanding view of some of the justice being handed out in parts of our country. Most of the people convicted are either extremely poor, of color, or both. Mr. Stevenson, you are an amazing human being for devoting your career to this cause.
TwinMom
I get it, people don't like lawyers generally, but I'd wager that most people would change their minds if they met lawyers like Bryan Stevenson. I heard an interview with Mr. Stevenson and Oprah on the Super Soul Conversations podcast, and I was immediately intrigued. After 10 minutes of hearing Mr. Stevenson speak about his non-profit, the Equal Justice Initiative and the work he does with those condemned to death row, I knew I had to learn more. Not often is a book life changing to the extent it changes long held beliefs and opinions. Before this book, I had very concrete notions about the legal process and death row cases. After reading this book, I understand that courts and juries can get it wrong more often than we'd dare to think, even in light of overwhelming evidence to the contrary. More disturbing is how difficult it is to reverse sending an innocent person to death row once they've been pronounced guilty. Mr. Stevenson is a Harvard educated lawyer, brilliant writer and inspirational human. Until I read this book, I'd never read another book where I've come away thinking, this should be mandatory reading for law school students or at least listed in the Top 100 Books to read in a lifetime list. This book chronicles Mr. Stevenson's representation of those condemned to die on death row. While the majority of these people committed the crimes alleged, some of them didn't. In addition to providing fascinating insight into death row cases and demographics, Mr. Stevenson details helping exonerate Walter McMillan, a death row inmate convicted of killing an 18 year old girl. Despite numerous witnesses attesting to the fact Mr. McMillan was at a church fish fry, the jury sided with witnesses who had been told to say something different by law enforcement. Despite the trial judge on the case telling Mr. Stevenson not to take the case and despite receiving bomb and death threats, Mr. Stevenson took the case, proved the evidence had been contrived, leading to Mr. McMillan's exoneration in 1993. I gained a different perspective on death row cases, the importance of initiatives like the Equal Justice Initiative, and a huge respect for Mr. Stevenson and lawyers like him. Not only did I personally feel that I'd been wasting my law degree for the past 18 years after reading this book, it made me want to do more for my community, to do more pro bono work and to really make a difference in lives. Bravo, Mr. Stevenson, for this beautifully written work and for challenging me to think in ways I never have before on this topic. You make the profession of law proud.
Short Excerpt Teaser
Chapter One
Mockingbird Players
The temporary receptionist was an elegant African American woman wearing a dark, expensive business suit-a well-dressed exception to the usual crowd at the Southern Prisoners Defense Committee (SPDC) in Atlanta, where I had returned after graduation to work full time. On her first day, I'd rambled over to her in my regular uniform of jeans and sneakers and offered to answer any questions she might have to help her get acclimated. She looked at me coolly and waved me away after reminding me that she was, in fact, an experienced legal secretary. The next morning, when I arrived at work in another jeans and sneakers ensemble, she seemed startled, as if some strange vagrant had made a wrong turn into the office. She took a beat to compose herself, then summoned me over to confide that she was leaving in a week to work at a "real law office." I wished her luck. An hour later, she called my office to tell me that "Robert E. Lee" was on the phone. I smiled, pleased that I'd misjudged her; she clearly had a sense of humor.
"That's really funny."
"I'm not joking. That's what he said," she said, sounding bored, not playful. "Line two."
I picked up the line.
"Hello, this is Bryan Stevenson. May I help you?"
"Bryan, this is Robert E. Lee Key. Why in the hell would you want to represent someone like Walter McMillian? Do you know he's reputed to be one of the biggest drug dealers in all of South Alabama? I got your notice entering an appearance, but you don't want anything to do with this case."
"Sir?"
"This is Judge Key, and you don't want to have anything to do with this McMillian case. No one really understands how depraved this situation truly is, including me, but I know it's ugly. These men might even be Dixie Mafia."
The lecturing tone and bewildering phrases from a judge I'd never met left me completely confused. "Dixie Mafia"? I'd met Walter McMillian two weeks earlier, after spending a day on death row to begin work on five capital cases. I hadn't reviewed the trial transcript yet, but I did remember that the judge's last name was Key. No one had told me the Robert E. Lee part. I struggled for an image of "Dixie Mafia" that would fit Walter McMillian.
" ‘Dixie Mafia'?"
"Yes, and there's no telling what else. Now, son, I'm just not going to appoint some out-of-state lawyer who's not a member of the Alabama bar to take on one of these death penalty cases, so you just go ahead and withdraw."
"I'm a member of the Alabama bar."
I lived in Atlanta, Georgia, but I had been admitted to the Alabama bar a year earlier after working on some cases in Alabama concerning jail and prison conditions.
"Well, I'm now sitting in Mobile. I'm not up in Monroeville anymore. If we have a hearing on your motion, you're going to have to come all the way from Atlanta to Mobile. I'm not going to accommodate you no kind of way."
"I understand, sir. I can come to Mobile, if necessary."
"Well, I'm also not going to appoint you because I don't think he's indigent. He's reported to have money buried all over Monroe County."
"Judge, I'm not seeking appointment. I've told Mr. McMillian that we would-" The dial tone interrupted my first affirmative statement of the phone call. I spent several minutes thinking we'd been accidentally disconnected before finally realizing that a judge had just hung up on me.
I was in my late twenties and about to start my fourth year at the SPDC when I met Walter McMillian. His case was one of the flood of cases I'd found myself frantically working on after learning of a growing crisis in Alabama. The state had nearly a hundred people on death row as well as the fastest-growing condemned population in the country, but it also had no public defender system, which meant that large numbers of death row prisoners had no legal representation of any kind. My friend Eva Ansley ran the Alabama Prison Project, which tracked cases and matched lawyers with the condemned men. In 1988, we discovered an opportunity to get federal funding to create a legal center that could represent people on death row. The plan was to use that funding to start a new nonprofit. We hoped to open it in Tuscaloosa and begin working on cases in the next year. I'd already worked on lots of death penalty cases in several Southern states, sometimes winning a stay of execution just minutes before an electrocution was scheduled. But I didn't think I was ready to take on the responsibilities of running a nonprofit law office. I planned to help get the organization off the ground, find a director, and then return to Atlanta.
When I'd visited death row a few weeks before that call from Robert E. Lee Key, I ...
Mockingbird Players
The temporary receptionist was an elegant African American woman wearing a dark, expensive business suit-a well-dressed exception to the usual crowd at the Southern Prisoners Defense Committee (SPDC) in Atlanta, where I had returned after graduation to work full time. On her first day, I'd rambled over to her in my regular uniform of jeans and sneakers and offered to answer any questions she might have to help her get acclimated. She looked at me coolly and waved me away after reminding me that she was, in fact, an experienced legal secretary. The next morning, when I arrived at work in another jeans and sneakers ensemble, she seemed startled, as if some strange vagrant had made a wrong turn into the office. She took a beat to compose herself, then summoned me over to confide that she was leaving in a week to work at a "real law office." I wished her luck. An hour later, she called my office to tell me that "Robert E. Lee" was on the phone. I smiled, pleased that I'd misjudged her; she clearly had a sense of humor.
"That's really funny."
"I'm not joking. That's what he said," she said, sounding bored, not playful. "Line two."
I picked up the line.
"Hello, this is Bryan Stevenson. May I help you?"
"Bryan, this is Robert E. Lee Key. Why in the hell would you want to represent someone like Walter McMillian? Do you know he's reputed to be one of the biggest drug dealers in all of South Alabama? I got your notice entering an appearance, but you don't want anything to do with this case."
"Sir?"
"This is Judge Key, and you don't want to have anything to do with this McMillian case. No one really understands how depraved this situation truly is, including me, but I know it's ugly. These men might even be Dixie Mafia."
The lecturing tone and bewildering phrases from a judge I'd never met left me completely confused. "Dixie Mafia"? I'd met Walter McMillian two weeks earlier, after spending a day on death row to begin work on five capital cases. I hadn't reviewed the trial transcript yet, but I did remember that the judge's last name was Key. No one had told me the Robert E. Lee part. I struggled for an image of "Dixie Mafia" that would fit Walter McMillian.
" ‘Dixie Mafia'?"
"Yes, and there's no telling what else. Now, son, I'm just not going to appoint some out-of-state lawyer who's not a member of the Alabama bar to take on one of these death penalty cases, so you just go ahead and withdraw."
"I'm a member of the Alabama bar."
I lived in Atlanta, Georgia, but I had been admitted to the Alabama bar a year earlier after working on some cases in Alabama concerning jail and prison conditions.
"Well, I'm now sitting in Mobile. I'm not up in Monroeville anymore. If we have a hearing on your motion, you're going to have to come all the way from Atlanta to Mobile. I'm not going to accommodate you no kind of way."
"I understand, sir. I can come to Mobile, if necessary."
"Well, I'm also not going to appoint you because I don't think he's indigent. He's reported to have money buried all over Monroe County."
"Judge, I'm not seeking appointment. I've told Mr. McMillian that we would-" The dial tone interrupted my first affirmative statement of the phone call. I spent several minutes thinking we'd been accidentally disconnected before finally realizing that a judge had just hung up on me.
I was in my late twenties and about to start my fourth year at the SPDC when I met Walter McMillian. His case was one of the flood of cases I'd found myself frantically working on after learning of a growing crisis in Alabama. The state had nearly a hundred people on death row as well as the fastest-growing condemned population in the country, but it also had no public defender system, which meant that large numbers of death row prisoners had no legal representation of any kind. My friend Eva Ansley ran the Alabama Prison Project, which tracked cases and matched lawyers with the condemned men. In 1988, we discovered an opportunity to get federal funding to create a legal center that could represent people on death row. The plan was to use that funding to start a new nonprofit. We hoped to open it in Tuscaloosa and begin working on cases in the next year. I'd already worked on lots of death penalty cases in several Southern states, sometimes winning a stay of execution just minutes before an electrocution was scheduled. But I didn't think I was ready to take on the responsibilities of running a nonprofit law office. I planned to help get the organization off the ground, find a director, and then return to Atlanta.
When I'd visited death row a few weeks before that call from Robert E. Lee Key, I ...
