SC Capital Case Litigation Initiative (SCCCLI)

The purpose of the Capital Case Litigation Initiative (CCLI) is to provide high-quality training and technical assistance on death penalty issues to judges and attorneys who litigate death penalty cases. This program focuses on ensuring quality representation and reliable jury verdicts. The goals of CCLI are to increase the number of capital litigation attorneys trained in death penalty cases, and to ensure that defense counsel, prosecutors, and judges have the most up-to-date and comprehensive information available to them on death penalty litigation.

The South Carolina Office of the Attorney General (SC-OAG) will utilize CCLI funds to provide high-quality training and technical assistance on death penalty issues to solicitors (district attorneys), assistant solicitors, and investigators who are directly involved in capital cases. The training is necessary, as most capital cases are prosecuted by solicitors in the State of South Carolina. In addition, the number of reversals on appeal has been high, which has resulted in a large number of cases being vacated.

In 1995, the State's Attorney General established a capital litigation section within the OAG's Prosecution Division (four attorneys are currently assigned to this section). The OAG proposes a two-phase strategy to train its solicitors including others within the State: (1) develop a South Carolina-specific prosecution protocol to be based on NDAA's Capital Litigation Training Course; and (2) target capital litigants in the offices of 16 solicitors by presenting three, 2-day seminars on death penalty litigation. The protocol will be distributed to participants via CD and hard copy ' approximately 45 attendees are expected at each seminar.

Funds will cover hourly wages for a legal educator to develop, produce, and distribute the training protocol; travel costs for staff, speakers, and participants (hotel, meals, airfare); training materials; rental costs for site location; and advertising expenses (web updates, posters, flyers, etc.). CA/NCF