Pamela Colloff

Reporter

Pamela Colloff is a reporter at ProPublica and a staff writer at The New York Times Magazine. Prior to joining ProPublica and the Times in 2017, she was an executive editor and staff writer at Texas Monthly. Her work has also appeared in The New Yorker and has been anthologized in “Best American Magazine Writing,” “Best American Crime Reporting,” “Best American Non-Required Reading,” and “Next Wave: America’s New Generation of Great Literary Journalists.”

“False Witness,” her ProPublica-New York Times investigation into jailhouse informants, received a National Magazine Award for Reporting in 2020. The story was also recognized with the Hillman Prize, the IRE Award, the Taylor Family Award for Fairness in Journalism, and the MOLLY National Journalism Prize. Colloff is currently expanding her article into a book for Random House.

In 2019, she received the Scripps Howard National Journalism Award in human interest storytelling for “Blood Will Tell,” a two-part investigation jointly published by ProPublica and The New York Times.

At Texas Monthly, Colloff earned a National Magazine Award in Feature Writing for her 2012 story, “The Innocent Man.” She is a seven-time National Magazine Award finalist.

Her 2010 story, “Innocence Lost” — about a wrongly convicted death row inmate named Anthony Graves — was credited with helping Graves win his freedom after 18 years behind bars. One month after its publication, all charges against Graves were dropped and he was released from jail, where he had been awaiting retrial.

In 2014, the Nieman Foundation for Journalism at Harvard University awarded her the Louis M. Lyons Award for Conscience and Integrity in Journalism.

Her oral history “96 Minutes,” about the 1966 University of Texas shootings, served as the basis for the 2016 documentary, “TOWER.” The film was short-listed for an Academy Award in Best Documentary Film and received a News & Documentary Emmy.

Colloff holds a bachelor’s degree in English literature from Brown University. She lives in Austin, Texas, with her husband and their two children.

Medical Examiner, Whose Testimony Helped Convict a Man in 2004 of Killing His Baby, Now Says He Was Wrong

The former Nashville medical examiner has recanted his testimony that Russell Maze’s son had died of shaken baby syndrome, joining the DA’s office in now saying a crime never occurred. Yet Maze could still spend the rest of his life in prison.

He Was Convicted of Killing His Baby. The DA’s Office Says He’s Innocent, but That Might Not Be Enough.

When new scientific evidence casts doubt on convictions, the justice system has no easy path to freedom — even when it’s the prosecutors doing the asking.

Is It Forensics or Is It Junk Science?

Dubious forensic techniques have spread throughout the criminal justice system for decades. Here’s what ProPublica has learned about junk forensic science techniques and how they proliferate.

33 Years After Dubious Evidence Helped Convict Him, Joe Bryan Has Been Released on Parole

His murder conviction rested largely on bloodstain-pattern analysis, a technique still in use throughout the criminal justice system, despite concerns about its reliability.

Convicted Based on Lies

These 10 men went to prison after prosecutors relied on the dubious accounts of jailhouse informants. Years later, each of them was exonerated.

A Liar Put Him on Death Row. His Co-Defendant Could Help Set Him Free. Why Won’t He?

Reversing course, a key witness who could help James Dailey stays silent in a Florida case that was built on dubious jailhouse informant testimony. Dailey could face execution.

A Liar’s Testimony Convinced a Jury to Convict a Man of Murder. Will Florida Execute Him Anyway?

A federal judge says key testimony used to convict James Dailey of murder was likely false. Dailey’s co-defendant has asserted — again — that Dailey had no involvement in the crime. So far, that hasn’t made a difference in the courts.

He’s a Liar, a Con Artist and a Snitch. His Testimony Could Soon Send a Man to His Death.

Paul Skalnik has a decadeslong criminal record and may be one of the most prolific jailhouse informants in U.S. history. The state of Florida is planning to execute a man based largely on his word.

Joe Bryan Denied Parole for Seventh Time

Though a forensic expert who testified against Bryan has admitted his conclusions were wrong, Bryan will remain behind bars.

Bloodstain Analysis Convinced a Jury She Stabbed Her 10-Year-Old Son. Now, Even Freedom Can’t Give Her Back Her Life.

Julie Rea was convicted of killing her son largely on the testimony of bloodstain-pattern analysts. She was later acquitted and exonerated, joining a growing community of Americans wrongly convicted with bad science.

Joe Bryan in His Own Words: On Being Convicted With Expert Testimony That Turned Out to Be Wrong

In a moving interview, Bryan, who has spent 31 years in a Texas prison for the 1985 murder of his wife, talks about his life behind bars and trying keep hope alive.

Judge in Joe Bryan Case Rejects Defense Pleas for New Trial

Texas’ highest criminal court will now decide the fate of Bryan, a former high school principal who has been in prison for 31 years for the murder of his wife, Mickey. A forensic expert who testified against him has admitted his conclusions in the case were wrong.

Texas Panel Faults Lab Chemist in Bryan Case for “Overstated Findings” and Inadequate DNA Analysis

The Texas Forensic Science Commission called out a second prosecution expert for her work on the murder case of the former high school principal convicted of the 1985 murder of his wife.

Blood-Spatter Expert in Joe Bryan Case Says “My Conclusions Were Wrong”

The expert whose testimony was key to Bryan’s conviction for his wife’s 1985 murder says he now believes that some of his techniques were incorrect. His admission comes as a judge considers whether Bryan, whose case was the subject of a ProPublica and New York Times Magazine investigation, should get a new trial.

Joe Bryan’s Attorneys Ask For New Trial, Say Murder Conviction Built On Faulty Forensics

During a three-day hearing in Texas, a succession of witnesses criticized the bloodstain-pattern analysis and exposed other flaws in the prosecution of a former high school principal convicted of the 1985 murder of his wife.

Influential Texas Commission Says Blood-Spatter Testimony in Joe Bryan’s Murder Case Was “Not Accurate or Scientifically Supported”

The findings of Texas Forensic Science Commission will make it harder to deny a new trial to Bryan, a high school principal convicted of murdering his wife. The case was the subject of an investigation by ProPublica and The New York Times Magazine.

Blood Will Tell, Part II

Joe Bryan has spent the past three decades in prison for the murder of his wife, a crime he claims he didn’t commit. His conviction rested largely on “bloodstain-pattern analysis” — a technique still in use throughout the criminal-justice system, despite concerns about its reliability.

Blood Will Tell, Part I

The murder of Mickey Bryan, a quiet fourth-grade teacher, stunned her small Texas town. Then her husband, a beloved high school principal, was charged with killing her. Did he do it, or had there been a terrible mistake?

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