Statement on the Introduction of the Innocence Protection Act of 2003
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
“The Innocence Protection Act (IPA) of 2003, part of the Advancing Justice Through DNA Technology Act of 2003, which was introduced by a bi-partisan group of Representatives and Senators today, is an important step forward. It establishes the framework for reforming a broken capital punishment system, and for continuing to improve the quality of criminal justice in America. We encourage Congress to immediately pass this bi-partisan, bi-cameral compromise bill.
By ensuring access to DNA testing, the legislation will help put to rest lingering questions of guilt and innocence. By encouraging and helping states to establish meaningful standards for lawyers in death penalty cases, the IPA will reduce the mistakes that too often send innocent people to death row.
DNA testing has already exonerated more than 130 people, more than a dozen of whom were on death row. In so doing, it has also often helped identify the real criminals. The provision, which provides access to post-conviction DNA testing, is named for Kirk Bloodsworth - the first person to be sentenced to death and proven innocent as a result of DNA testing.
DNA testing is only part of the story. It can help correct injustices after the fact and can help find the guilty, but it cannot prevent those mistakes from being made in the first place. The best way to ensure fair and accurate trials is to make sure the lawyers in the case are qualified, experienced, and have the tools they need to do the job.
The most comprehensive study ever conducted on the subject found that more than two-thirds of all death penalty verdicts are reversed, and eight of ten result in a sentence less than death. The most common reason for these reversals is the absence of adequate defense counsel. Too often lawyers are unequipped to do the job - they don’t have the experience, the training, or tools to help the courts find justice. Sometimes the defense attorney even sleeps or drinks their way through the trial. The IPA will help states establish the systems, train the lawyers, and set and enforce the standards needed to ensure a fair and speedy trial.
This bi-partisan compromise, that brings together the best interests and instincts of leading Republicans and Democrats from both the House and the Senate, is a critical start. The Innocence Protection Act provides a framework for success by recognizing our shared interests in justice.”
- Wayne Smith, President
The Justice Project
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The Justice Project [ http://www.thejusticeproject.org ] (TJP) is a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization that addresses issues of social justice here and abroad. TJP’s Campaign for Criminal Justice Reform is a national initiative that addresses flaws in the American justice system.
