Bryan Stevenson
Founder and Executive Director, Equal Justice Initiative
Born 1959
Leading advocate for criminal justice reform who has won reversals for over 140 wrongly condemned death row prisoners and challenged the legacy of racial injustice in America.
Biography
Bryan Stevenson is a public interest lawyer, law professor, and author who has dedicated his career to fighting for the most vulnerable people in the American criminal justice system. As founder and executive director of the Equal Justice Initiative (EJI) in Montgomery, Alabama, Stevenson has won reversals, relief, or release for over 140 wrongly condemned prisoners on death row.
Stevenson's most celebrated case, Walter McMillian's, was the subject of his bestselling book Just Mercy and the 2019 film of the same name. McMillian, a Black man in Alabama, was wrongly convicted of murder and sentenced to death based on perjured testimony. Stevenson's work to free McMillian exposed prosecutorial misconduct, racial bias, and systemic failures in the capital punishment system.
Beyond individual cases, Stevenson has argued and won landmark cases before the Supreme Court, including Roper v. Simmons (which prohibited the death penalty for juveniles) and Sullivan v. Florida (challenging life without parole for children). Through EJI, he created the National Memorial for Peace and Justice—the first memorial dedicated to victims of lynching in America—and the Legacy Museum, which chronicles the history of racial injustice from slavery to mass incarceration.
Major Accomplishments
- 1Won reversals for over 140 wrongly condemned death row prisoners
- 2Founded the Equal Justice Initiative
- 3Authored the bestselling book Just Mercy
- 4Created the National Memorial for Peace and Justice
- 5Won landmark Supreme Court cases limiting the death penalty for juveniles
Notable Opinions & Cases
Walter McMillian case
1993
Freed a wrongly condemned death row prisoner, exposing systemic racism and prosecutorial misconduct
Roper v. Simmons (as amicus)
2005
Contributed to the Supreme Court's decision prohibiting the death penalty for juveniles
Sullivan v. Florida (as counsel)
2010
Challenged life without parole sentences for children in non-homicide cases
Montgomery v. Louisiana (as counsel)
2016
Won retroactive application of the ban on mandatory life without parole for juveniles
Legacy
Stevenson is the most important criminal justice reform advocate of his generation. His work has saved innocent lives, changed constitutional law, and forced Americans to confront the racial injustices embedded in the criminal legal system. The Equal Justice Initiative and the memorials he has created ensure that the history of racial violence and injustice is not forgotten, while his ongoing legal work continues to challenge the excesses of mass incarceration and the death penalty.
Famous Quotes
“Each of us is more than the worst thing we've ever done.”
“The opposite of poverty is not wealth; the opposite of poverty is justice.”
“We have a system of justice in this country that treats you much better if you're rich and guilty than if you're poor and innocent.”
“Hopelessness is the enemy of justice.”