Abstract
The advent of DNA testing has brought with it a unique opportunity, not only to exonerate and free those who have been convicted and sentenced for crimes they did not commit, but also to study how justice has gone awry in those cases. In recognition of the power of DNA testing to exonerate, the Utah Legislature passed a bill in 2001 entitled “Postconviction Testing of DNA,” which established a mechanism for people wrongfully convicted of felonies to seek exoneration through DNA technology.1 The Utah Legislature, in its 2008 General Session, just passed a bill that will provide vital assistance to those who seek exoneration for crimes they did not commit.2 The bill, entitled “Exoneration and Innocence Assistance,” has a remarkable history. It was first introduced during the 2006 General Session by Representative David Litvack,3 who had been contacted and heavily lobbied by then University of Utah law student Heather Harris. Heather had developed a passion for the issue while attending a course taught by Professor Daniel Medwed, a leading advocate for the wrongfully convicted.4 She learned that most exonerees are released from prison with few if any resources and no financial assistance for their years of imprisonment, and she felt profoundly that something should be done to help these people.
Recommended Citation
Horton II, Creighton C.
(2008)
"Legislative Update: Utah’s Exoneration
and Innocence Assistance Bill,"
Utah Law Review: Vol. 2008:
No.
1, Article 6.
Available at:
https://dc.law.utah.edu/ulr/vol2008/iss1/6