2020 has been an eventful year for Willie Manning. His case suffered a setback in April, when Judge Lee Howard denied permission for hair fragments from Tiffany Miller’s car to undergo further DNA testing.

Willie now has more waiting ahead of him while the judge’s ruling is appealed.

On the other hand, Willie was very much encouraged by rulings in favour of two other long term Mississippi death row inmates, both also African Americans. Eddie Lee Howard had his capital murder conviction and death sentence overturned in August; and Curtis Flowers was exonerated in September.

Beyond these legal developments were various other events that impinged on Willie’s life: appalling conditions and deaths at his prison; the highs and lows of the Black Lives Matter movement; and anxiety about Covid-19.

As 2020 ends, we wish Willie a peaceful Christmas and New Year.