The Exoneration Project -- Significant Accomplishments
In 2014-2015, the Exoneration Project was again fortunate to obtain a number of important achievements. One of the EP’s oldest cases, our representation of Tyrone Hood, proved to be one of the EP’s most high-profile, and unique, stories of exoneration ever. On the heels of a popular New Yorker article about Mr. Hood’s innocence, and with former EP student and now Winston & Strawn attorney Karl Leonard, EP attorneys worked through social media and political pressure to convince former-Governor George Ryan to grant Mr. Hood executive relief—by commuting his sentence—just days before he left office. After that, the State dismissed the charges against Mr. Hood and he was finally formally free of his wrongful conviction. Mr. Hood, who spent over 22 years wrongfully convicted, is now in the process of putting his life together and impressively making important strides in the process of reentry.
Mr. Hood’s exoneration, along with those of several others in the past 5 years—for example, James Kluppleberg, Eric Caine, James Harden, Harold Richardson, and Carl Chatman—has led the EP to hire a social worker, Jessi LaChance, to work with our clients and students as we assist our released clients work through the difficult maze that is reentry.
Most recently, in a case that students have worked on its inception, the EP won the appeal of John Kines regarding when, under Illinois Forensic Testing Statute, new testing is available due to advancements in scientific technology. Significantly, in addition to allowing Mr. Kines to pursue DNA testing that has the potential to prove his innocence, the Kines decision was published (which is atypical in post-conviction cases), meaning that the good law made in this case can benefit others in Illinois seeking DNA testing based upon technologies that were previously unavailable.
Building on successes of our 3L’s last year, which won third-stage evidentiary hearings (mini trials, really) for a number of clients, the EP set off on a number of hearings in the last year. For example, on behalf of George Anderson, one of the very few cases to go to a hearing under the Illinois Torture Relief and Inquiry Commission Act, students have had the unique opportunity to participate in post-conviction expert depositions, which they’ve successfully used in subsequent pleadings to argue that important medical evidence relative to our client’s claim of torture should be admitted at the hearing. Students have done extensive investigation and preparation for witnesses in the course of this hearing (which is ongoing). Likewise, for John Galvan, students have met and prepped witnesses, drafted pleadings, and worked closely with our clients as his evidentiary hearing continues. A third hearing, for Keith Mitchell, set to begin near the outset of fall quarter is being staffed by 3Ls returning to the Project after countless hours of hard work that came before them.
Our 2L students have been hard at work drafting entirely new petitions, motions, and appeals. This year, students drafted a successive post-conviction petition for Patrick Prince (which itself has rigorous “cause” and “prejudice” standards), leading the Court to issue an ruling allowing Mr. Prince’s case to proceed. Another student-led effort in a case out of Peoria, Illinois, was the filing of a petition for forensic DNA testing on behalf of Johnnie Flemming. This DNA testing has the potential to conclusively prove the innocence of our client, Mr. Flemming, whose conviction is so old it pre-dates DNA testing and has the quintessential hallmarks of a wrongful conviction: a single witness identification months after the offense. Clinic students also worked on other appellate briefs for clients Sean Tyler and Shawn Whirl, and that briefing prompted the appellate court to request oral argument (a rarity in post-conviction cases) in both cases.