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.

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.