Connecticut Postconviction Testing of DNA Evidence to Exonerate the Innocent Project

As submitted by the proposer: The Connecticut Postconviction Testing of DNA Evidence to Exonerate the Innocent Project is a joint venture of the Department of Emergency Services and Public Protection (DESPP)/Division of Scientific Services (DSS), the Office of the Chief Public Defender's (OCPD)/Connecticut Innocence Project (CTIP), and the Division of Criminal Justice's (DCJ)Office of the Chief State's Attorney (OCSA).The funding will be used collaboratively by the three State agencies involved with the desired goal to proactively identify cases of individuals convicted of violent felonies for which they may be innocent. The goal of the project is to quickly and proactively identify cases of wrongful conviction where DNA analysis of hairs previously compared may establish innocence and seek the release and exoneration of the innocent individuals.The funding from the 2016 Postconviction Testing of DNA Evidence to Exonerate the Innocent project will enable the identification and review of an estimated 600 cases in which hair comparisons were made and DNA testing in an estimated 60 of those cases. The funding will permit prompt testing of samples leading to a quicker process of release and exoneration of the innocent. ca/ncf