Innocence Project Bournemouth

posted by Justice on Feb 8

A bill that would address the causes of wrongful conviction and help innocent parolees seek exoneration is stalled in the Ohio House of Representatives, seven months after passing the Senate. The measure would require that law enforcement agencies preserve crime scene evidence and conduct “blind” identification procedures — in which the administering officer doesn’t know the identity of the suspect

Politics Delay Reform in Ohio

A bill that would address the causes of wrongful conviction and help innocent parolees seek exoneration is stalled in the Ohio House of Representatives, seven months after passing the Senate.

The measure would require that law enforcement agencies preserve crime scene evidence and conduct “blind” identification procedures — in which the administering officer doesn’t know the identity of the suspect. It would also open a path for people on parole to seek DNA tests that can prove innocence.

Although the bill has bipartisan support and the Governor has said he will sign it if passed, the Columbus Dispatch reports that progress seems to be delayed by a legislative logjam.

The delay has frustrated supporters, including Mark Godsey, director of the Ohio Innocence Project.

“All parties, including prosecutors, police, Democrats and Republicans, worked for years to create a consensus bill. It's a shame it's being delayed at this point,” Godsey said, noting that the bill would help prevent convictions of innocent people.

Read the full story here. (Columbus Dispatch, 2/5/10)

If you live in Ohio, sign up for Innocence Project email updates today to receive breaking news and actions relating to this issue in the weeks ahead.

Tags: legal, , Barrister

posted by Justice on Dec 2

In 2004, Kentucky improved its evidence preservation law, requiring that law enforcement agencies save evidence from most major crimes. But an Associated Press report this weekend shows that evidence is missing in several key cases across the state and casts doubt on preservation policies in practice

Missing Evidence Presents a Problem in Kentucky

In 2004, Kentucky improved its evidence preservation law, requiring that law enforcement agencies save evidence from most major crimes. But an Associated Press report this weekend shows that evidence is missing in several key cases across the state and casts doubt on preservation policies in practice.

Defense attorneys say evidence has gone missing in Kentucky, resulting in problems for six capital cases and possibly hundreds of other prosecutions, including rapes and robberies.

All the cases predate DNA testing, which can now be used to determine guilt.

“It's really becoming an issue,” said Kentucky Innocence Project chief Ted Shouse, whose office is reviewing more than 4,000 old cases. “This is going to be a huge problem.”

… “Clearly, the number of exonerations from DNA in this country should be a wake up call to preserve evidence,” Shouse said.

The catch is making sure the law is followed by all parties – clerks, court reporters, law enforcement, said Rebecca Brown, a policy advocate for The Innocence Project, a New York-based national organization that seeks to free those wrongly convicted.

“There's sometimes a disconnect between what's on the books and actual practice,” Brown said. “A mandate doesn't necessarily make it down to all the people charged with retaining that evidence.”

Read the full story here. (Associated Press, 11/26/09)

Procedures mandating proper collection, cataloguing and storage of crime scene evidence are crucial to a fair justice system — preserving evidence doesn’t only help free the innocent, it also helps law enforcement agencies solve cold cases.

View a map of evidence preservation policies nationwide.

Learn more about the Innocence Project’s recommended policies for evidence preservation.

Tags: , Miscarriage of Justice, pro bono

posted by Justice on May 16

Three years ago tomorrow, Doug Warney was freed from a New York prison after serving nine years for a murder he didn’t commit. Warney, who has a history of mental health issues, was convicted based in part on a false confession he allegedly made after 12 hours of questioning. About 25% of wrongful convictions overturned by DNA testing nationwide have involved false confessions or admissions.

Three Years of Freedom
Three years ago tomorrow, Doug Warney was freed from a New York prison after serving nine years for a murder he didn’t commit. Warney, who has a history of mental health issues, was convicted based in part on a false confession he allegedly made after 12 hours of questioning. About 25% of wrongful convictions overturned by DNA testing nationwide have involved false confessions or admissions.

At the time of Warney’s exoneration in 2006, Innocence Project Co-Director Peter Neufeld said it should lead law enforcement agencies across the state to begin recording interrogations. Three years later, although many individual agencies in the state have begun to record interrogations, New York is still one of 36 states with no law requiring recordings.

“These DNA results don’t just show that Doug Warney is innocent – they reveal criminal conduct on the part of at least two Rochester police officers, and they demonstrate tunnel vision on the part of police and prosecutors who ignored compelling evidence that the confession was bogus,” said Peter Neufeld, Co-Director of the Innocence Project. “This case should be a clarion call for every law enforcement agency in the state to begin recording police interrogations for serious crimes.”

Earlier this month, the chief judge of New York’s highest court said he would create a new permanent task force to examine causes of wrongful convictions – like false confessions – and recommend reforms to prevent wrongful convictions like Warney’s.

Neufeld said this task force could be a driving force to finally bring about changes like recorded interrogations in New York, but that it is also critical that the state legislature take action.

“While this is a major step forward, it is one piece of the whole. There are major systemic weaknesses demanding immediate action, and we will continue working with the Governor, Attorney General and Legislature to advance critical reforms in this legislative session that can prevent wrongful convictions. The task force Judge Lippman is creating does not supplant other efforts – it complements them and makes them even more critical.”

Other Exoneration Anniversaries This Week:

Sunday: Neil Miller, Massachusetts (Served 9.5 Years, Exonerated 5/1/0/2000)

Monday: Curtis McCarty, Oklahoma (Served 21 Years, Exonerated 5/11/2007)

Thursday: Josiah Sutton, Texas (Served 4.5 Years, Exonerated 5/14/04)

Tags: Miscarriage of Justice, legal aid, Barrister

posted by Justice on Mar 19

Eight years ago today, Kenneth Waters walked out of a Massachusetts prison a free man after serving 18 years for a crime he didn’t commit.

Eight Years Later, an Exoneration Case Approaches the Spotlight
Eight years ago today, Kenneth Waters walked out of a Massachusetts prison a free man after serving 18 years for a crime he didn’t commit. He was wrongfully convicted in 1983 based in part on false testimony from informants. Although fingerprints collected from the victim’s house did not match Waters, police did not share this information with prosecutors or defense attorneys. Waters was sentenced to life in prison and would serve nearly two decades before DNA proved his innocence. Sadly, he died in an accident just six months after his release.

It has been eight years since Waters was freed, but his case is about to get a new wave of attention. A film about his wrongful conviction and his sister Betty Anne Waters’ fight to free him is currently in production. Starring two-time Academy Award winner Hilary Swank as Betty Anne, the film will tell the incredible story of her struggle and dedication to free her wrongfully imprisoned brother.

After Kenneth lost all of his appeals, Betty Anne, a single mother of two, decided to take action. Convinced of her brother’s innocence and desperate to challenge the conviction, she began what would be a 12-year process of putting herself through college and law school. In 1998, she graduated from the Roger Williams University School of Law and began to work tirelessly on her brother’s case. By the time she contacted the Innocence Project, she had already located the biological evidence and was trying to have it subjected to DNA testing. Finally, the Innocence Project helped secure DNA testing that conclusively excluded Waters as the perpetrator and he was freed in 2001.

The movie, which has just begun shooting in Ann Arbor, Michigan, will be directed by Tony Goldwyn. Other cast members include Sam Rockwell, who will play Kenneth Waters, Minnie Driver, Juliette Lewis, Melissa Leo and Peter Gallagher.

Other anniversaries this week:

Tuesday: Arthur Mumphrey, Texas (Served 17 years, exonerated 3/17/06)

Wednesday: Wiley Fountain, Texas (Served 16 years, Exonerated 3/18/03)

Thursday: Edward Green, District of Columbia (Served 1 year, Exonerated 3/19/90)

Julius Ruffin, Virginia (Served 20 years, Exonerated 3/19/03)

Tags: legal, injustice, Innocence Project

posted by Justice on Mar 19

It’s been a good week for DNA testing access. Yesterday, Mississippi Gov. Haley Barbour signed a new law granting DNA testing access to prisoners when it can definitively prove innocence or guilt.

Four to Go

It’s been a good week for DNA testing access. Yesterday, Mississippi Gov. Haley Barbour signed a new law granting DNA testing access to prisoners when it can definitively prove innocence or guilt. Mississippi’s law comes on the heels of the new DNA access law passed last week in South Dakota. When the Innocence Project started doing this work 15 years ago, not a single state had a DNA testing access law. Now there are just four states to go: Alabama, Alaska, Massachusetts and Oklahoma.

The Mississippi law also requires that law enforcement agencies preserve biological evidence collected as long as a case is unsolved or a convicted defendant is under state supervision in connection with the case. About half of the states now have laws requiring evidence preservation.

Click here for more on these two landmark laws, and for an interactive map on the reforms in place in your state.

Tags: Layla D’monte, law, Innocence Project