AUSTIN (KXAN) — An Austin woman who spent more than 20 years in prison for the death of an infant — a crime she did not commit — will not be deported, in spite of an immigration hold filed for her in Travis County after her legal status in the U.S. expired.
The Innocence Project posted the update on its website when Carmen Mejia was released.
Woman convicted in baby’s 2003 scalding death exonerated on ‘basis of actual innocence’
Mejia was convicted of murder in 2005, accused of causing scalding injuries to an infant that resulted in its death. Her case caught the attention of the Innocence Project and, 22 years later, Mejia was exonerated on the ‘basis of actual innocence’ in a Travis County court.
During a hearing on March 9, 2026, Travis County Judge David Wahlberg signed the exoneration orders. In remarks to the court, he added that the tragedy of this case may not be over…