Overview
- After the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals declared her actually innocent, Judge P. David Wahlberg dismissed the indictment tied to the 2003 infant death.
- An ICE detainer issued after her 2005 conviction initially kept Mejia in the Travis County jail, but DHS lifted the hold, and she was released late Tuesday and reunited with her daughters.
- New forensic analysis and testimony, including a daughter’s account that she turned on the hot water, led experts—among them the original medical examiner—to conclude the death was an accident.
- Travis County District Attorney José Garza apologized for the wrongful prosecution, and a tip from former trial bailiff Art Guerrero helped prompt the Innocence Project’s review.
- Mejia previously held Temporary Protected Status that lapsed during incarceration; DHS says she may remain until TPS expires, while her attorneys say she lacks active status and are pursuing legal remedies.