Section on Civil Rights
San Diego Salon C, North Tower/Lobby Level, San Diego Marriott Hotel & Marina
Remedies for Exonerated Prisoners
(Program to be published in Public Interest Law Journal)
Despite widespread public interest in wrongful conviction stories and public sympathy for exonerees, states resist providing post-release financial and other support for the exonerated. A handful of state compensation statutes are reasonably accessible and generous, but many are difficult and stingy.
Professor Avery will discuss the difficulties and limitations of malicious prosecution as a constitutional cause of action for wrongfully convicted persons. He will review other constitutional claims that hold greater promise for such victims, including claims based on the failure to disclose exculpatory evidence, manufactured evidence and suggestive eyewitness identifications. Professor Bernhard will review legislation designed to compensate the exonerated, touch on why that legislation is necessary, review the current landscape, and speculate about the causes of congressional reticence. Dean Lawrence will build upon Judge Pierre Leval's celebrated article on no-fault libel suits to discuss law's expressive role in restoring the reputations of the exonerated. Ms. Weigand will examine life after exoneration, including best practices in social service provision to exonerees, exoneree leadership, the effects of incarceration on the exonerated, state and federal legislation, exoneration as a core ingredient for criminal justice reform, and the uphill battle for expungement and compensation.
Business Meeting at Program Conclusion.
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