Louisiana still wants to execute a death row inmate after his conviction was overturned

Louisiana Illuminator ^ | December 3, 2025 | Richard Webster

[TheDon]

Jimmie “Chris” Duncan walked out of the Ouachita Parish Correctional Center and into the arms of his parents last week after spending the past 27 years on death row.

Seven months ago, a Louisiana district court judge vacated his murder conviction for killing his former girlfriend’s toddler, citing doubts about the evidence used to convict him. The judge granted bail after multiple legal delays, including an unsuccessful request by prosecutors to the Louisiana Supreme Court to stop his release. Now free, Duncan spent Thanksgiving with his family — then celebrated his 57th birthday the next day.

“We thank God for Jimmie coming home,” Duncan’s stepmom, Sharon Duncan, said in an emailed statement on behalf of the family.

But Duncan’s journey to freedom is far from over. Prosecutors have asked the state Supreme Court to reinstate his death sentence. Duncan’s attorneys declined to make him immediately available for an interview.

...

[TheDon]

What do you think, should they let him off the hook?

[SkyDancer]

Did he or didn’t do it. Then too, twenty seven years on DR? Is that justice?

[Harmless Teddy Bear]

In a video of West's 1993 examination of Haley, which was not shown to jurors at the trial, the dentist can be seen taking a mold of Duncan's teeth and grinding it into the girl's body. (West has previously said he was simply using what he called a “direct comparison” technique — in which he presses a mold of a person's teeth directly onto the location of suspected bite marks.)

And that is, of course, not troubling at all.

Good grief.

I would like to hear some evidence on the sexual assault part of this story.

Or what that all they had? Bite marks equal sexual assault?

That would be even more troubling.

[ifinnegan]

Incoherent nonsense.

[Harmless Teddy Bear]

Counterpoint?

[This_Dude]

If there’s ANY DOUBT AT ALL, we must not carry out a death sentence. If it’s proven beyond a shadow of a reasonable doubt that he DID do it, then I’d flip the switch myself, but until we can 110% PROVE his guilt, I would err on the side of caution

[ifinnegan]

“ Or what that all they had?”

“Grinding” a mold of teeth in to a body?

I have no real idea what you or the source you quote are trying to say.

[SuperLuminal]

“On the hook” would be good...

[Harmless Teddy Bear]

You could read the article.

[mdmathis6]

They should reinstate the criminal negligent homicide or at least involuntary manslaughter...he left the kid alone and the kid probably drowned...yes the kid was almost 2 years old but there is a reason why they call them toddlers...she may have lost balance sitting in the tub and pitched forward and drowned. it can happen!

Since he has already sat in prison for 27 years his punishment is done. They can’t prove he mean to hurt the kid...the state needs to let this go!(but watch him very carefully for the rest of his life)

[Valpal1]

“The evidence shows the witness for Louisiana, Dr. Steven Hayne, a now-discredited Mississippi coroner, lied about his qualifications as an expert and thus gave unreliable testimony about the cause of death.”

I tend to think the state is pushing because eventually every case involving Hayne is in jeopardy of being overturned.

They are trying to stop the dam from breaking in a futile effort to stop the truth from gumming up their incompetent system even more.

[Harmless Teddy Bear]

Probably. I am still looking to find, why did they think the little girl was raped?

I have heard of people raping children and washing them to removed evidence but there usually is some sign left that the assault happened even if you do not have identifying proof as to who did it.

You should have tears, abrasions something like that, especially with a child so small.

[Quickgun]

I agree. On the one hand, there are certainly plenty of criminals who deserve the death penalty, more than what actually receive it, On the other hand, people’s lives are entrusted to lawyers that can’t be trusted with a dime..

[Valpal1]

Evidence found and testified to by an incompetent and unreliable “expert” is the same as no evidence at all.

His examination notes are useless, how do we know if made stuff up, how do we know if the bite marks were real or manufactured.

Once your expert is declared unreliable by the courts, it’s game over. The state can’t go back in time and do the autopsy over and photographs are rarely good enough.

[Harmless Teddy Bear]

Absolutely.

That is why some police officers are not ever called by the prosecution, they have been caught lying so many times that their testimony is unreliable.

Which leaves me with the question of why they are still employed but that is another matter.

I don't think these two men were the only ones to do the autopsy but I could be wrong.

It is just such a weird angle to come from.

Death by negligence I can see. Even death by deliberate drowning. Sure. The rape thing is just hanging out there with nothing to support it.

[deport]

VMr. Duncan has long main­tained his inno­cence, explain­ing that he left Haley in the bath­tub alone while he washed dish­es, and returned to find her float­ing face down. Haley’s moth­er, Allison Layton Statham, tes­ti­fied at Mr. Duncan’s first bail hear­ing in July 2025, that she believed him to be innocent.