University of Utah : S.J. Quinney College of Law

S.J. Quinney to present "Beyond Biology: Wrongful Convictions in the Post-DNA World"

Posted: 9 Nov 2007 by Barry Scholl
Updated on: 13 Nov 2007

Tags: biology utah law review ulr ucjc dna daniel medwed 

Since 1989, over 200 prisoners have been exonerated in the United States due to post-conviction DNA testing, their innocence proven beyond a shadow of a doubt.  The original convictions in those cases occurred as a result of a number of errors, including mistaken identifications, false confessions, police and prosecutorial misconduct, ineffective assistance of counsel, perjury by jailhouse informants, and the use of dubious forensic science.  Presumably, the factors that led to the wrongful convictions in those cases overturned by DNA appear in matters that lack biological evidence (an estimated 80-90% of criminal cases overall), yet non-DNA cases are notoriously difficult to litigate.  Over time, moreover, the rate of DNA exonerations is bound to diminish as pretrial DNA testing becomes commonplace and, thus, more innocent suspects are filtered out at the front end of the process.  Accordingly, issues surrounding non-DNA claims of innocence will become increasingly significant.

These issues will be tackled at a two-day symposium to be held Nov. 15-16, 2007, at the University of Utah S.J. Quinney College of Law. The event is free, and the public is invited to attend. A reception will follow each session.

The schedule for the symposium is as follows:

Utah’s pending Exoneration and Assistance Bill will be discussed by a panel of local experts Thursday, Nov. 15, from 3:30 to 5:30 p.m. in the moot court room.  Lawmakers are currently considering this bill, a companion to the DNA Actual Innocence Bill that the Utah Legislature passed in 2001. The new bill would allow evidence other than DNA to exonerate an inmate if it clearly demonstrates their innocence. An exoneree could be awarded the average annual wage in Utah for each year of imprisonment for up to 15 years. Twenty-one other state legislatures have passed laws providing some form of financial assistance. In 2004, President Bush approved legislation giving federal exonerees $50,000 for every year spent in prison and an additional $50,000 for each year spent on death row.
    Participants in the panel discussion will include:
 
Jensie L. Anderson, clinical professor of law and president, Rocky Mountain Innocence Center
Heather Harris, attorney, office of Scott Williams
Creighton C. Horton II, assistant Utah Attorney General
David Litvak, Utah House Representative
Katie Monroe, executive director, Rocky Mountain Innocence Center
Erin Riley, assistant Utah Attorney General
       
    Presentations of research from top legal scholars on wrongful convictions and the role of DNA will take place Friday, November 16th from 1:00 to 3:30 p.m. in the moot courtroom.    

Speakers include:
   
Daniel S. Medwed, associate professor of law, S. J. Quinney College of Law
Susan A. Bandes, professor of law, Distinguished Scholar; DePaul University College of Law; visiting professor, University of Chicago Law School
George C. Thomas III, professor of law, Judge Alexander P. Waugh Sr. Distinguished Scholar; Rutgers University, Newark
Ronald F. Wright Jr., professor of law, executive associate dean for academic affairs; Wake Forest University

The event is sponsored by the Utah Law Review and the Utah Criminal Justice Center.  4 free CLE hours are offered for attendance at both sessions.  Please contact Miriam Lovin, Senior Events Coordinator, at lovinm@law.utah.edu for further information.

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