Jesse Griffith

On May 27, 2003, James Webb accused his nephew, 18-year-old Jesse Griffith, of stealing a numerous items from his home in Lubbock, Texas. At the time, Jesse and his mother were living with Webb. Griffith admitted that he had taken a ring from Webb’s home and pawned it. However, he regretted what he had done, so he got the ring back and gave it to his mother, who then returned it to Webb. When the ring was returned, Webb became angry and accused Griffith of stealing several other items from the home and contacted the police.

On June 3, 2003, Jesse was charged with felony theft. On December 11, 2003 he pled guilty and was sentenced to two years of deferred adjudication. In the ensuing years, as a result of difficulty finding work due to his felony conviction Griffith was homeless, had no phone, and missed appointments with his probation officer. As a result, his deferred adjudication was extended. In 2010, his deferred adjudication was revoked and he was sent to prison for a year.

Jesse served one year in prison due to violation of his deferred adjudication requirements.

In 2016, Webb discovered that one of the items he had told police was stolen by Jesse was still in his possession. At that time, he admitted to Jesse that a second item he had accused Jesse of stealing had been misplaced rather than stolen.

In April 2017, IPTX, filed a petition for a writ of habeas corpus seeking to vacate Jesse’s conviction. The Lubbock County District Attorney’s Office supported the petition and the trial court judge recommended that the writ be granted. In October 2017, the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals granted the writ and vacated Griffith’s convictions. On December 18, 2017, the prosecution dismissed the charge.