Massachusetts and New England Innocence Collaboration

The purpose of the Wrongful Conviction Review Program is to provide high quality and efficient representation for potentially wrongfully convicted defendants in post-conviction claims of innocence. This program is funded under the FY15 (BJA - Wrongful Conviction Review) Pub. L. No. 113-76, 128 Stat. 5, 62. Post-conviction innocence claims are likely to include complex challenges to the reliability or accuracy of evidence presented at trial which fall mainly into three categories: eyewitness identification evidence; confession evidence; and forensic evidence. The goals of this initiative are to provide quality representation to those who may have been wrongfully convicted; alleviate burdens placed on the criminal justice system through costly and prolonged post-conviction litigation; and identify, whenever possible, the actual perpetrator of the crime.

The Committee for Public Counsel Services, along with the New England Innocence Project and the Boston College Law School Innocence Clinic, will use the award to investigate and litigate non-DNA wrongful convictions in the New England region. The funds will support costs for an investigator and two paralegals, fund an Expert Funding System to secure program experts and out-of-state investigators, support travel costs to various New England states, and acquire a case management system.

CA/NCF