legal aid society wrongful conviction unitdavid and kate bagby 2020

The article has been updated to account for the one exoneration produced in that year. Then, two days later, he told the court that he had, in fact, ordered the polygraph and helped formulate the questions, according to a transcript of the proceedings. As New York Citys primary public defender, The Legal Aid Society has trial offices across all five boroughs, and specialized unitssuch as DNA litigation, forensics, and a Wrongful Conviction Unit (WCU) launched in March 2019. I. As the Court has obviously seen, I have nobody else that has said that, Hale told the court. CRUs are tasked with investigating convictions secured by their own officeoften the colleagues, friends and supervisors of CRU staff. Myself and a multidisciplinary team of students reviewed criminal cases in Western Australia for possible wrongful conviction. Visit Our Campus Discovering our campus is a breeze, whether you're a high-schooler thinking about attending DU, an admitted student learning your way around, or a teacher or counselor setting up a group visit. The Exploitation Intervention Project works with trafficking survivors to help them vacate criminal convictions related to their trafficking and seal the records of those arrests. Had we known about these officers, we would never have brought these cases.. Their scientists will collaborate with the Delivering Justice Project to determine the most appropriate DNA testing and analysis. According to Sims attorneys, Hale never disclosed this information to the defense. The justice system can be overwhelming. Prior to joining the Legal Aid Society, Sherry was Of Counsel Bashian P.C. CUNY Policy On Sexual Misconduct. The new head of Brooklyns Conviction Review Unit should be someone with no prior connection to the office, in order to avoid any conflicts of loyalty or unconscious bias, Felber told New York Focus in a statement. Copyright 2022 The City University of New York School of Law | 2 Court Square, Long Island City, NY 11101-4356 | Phone: 718-340-4200 More than half of wrongful convictions can be traced to witnesses who lied in court or made false accusations. . LAS in the News 03.03.23. Tandy Lau is a Report for America corps member and writes about public safety for the Amsterdam News. Subscribe to The Legal Aid Society's newsletters for campaign updates, case victories, client stories, and more. The woman had told the authorities that Mr. Sandino warned that she would go to jail and lose custody of her children if she refused. Brooklyn prosecutors are seeking to throw out 378 criminal convictions mostly low-level drug and traffic offenses, dating to 1999 that relied on 13 former New York Police Department officers who were later convicted of crimes related to their work. Our services focus on providing support to survivors as they re-build after abuse. 40 Worth Street, Suite 606. Canada's long history of processes intended to rectify . These convictions continue to hang around people and impact them in all kinds of ways, Mr. Gonzalez said. Record Sealing The total is expected to rise to 496. Legal Aid Society (1) The Legal Aid Society (1) Get fresh Wrongful Conviction jobs daily straight to your inbox! Suite 111 530 West New York Street . The Brooklyn cases originated from arrests that took place between 1999 and 2017. Students in the Defenders Clinic advocate for transformative justice in the face of mass incarceration. Emily Niedzwiecki. View Case Acceptance Criteria. Subscribe to The Legal Aid Society's newsletters for campaign updates, case victories, client stories, and more. ), what are the main parts of each system? | translate}}, {{ "Select a category below to get started" | translate }}, {{ "Total resources added across time" | translate }}, {{ "Number of resources viewed in the past year" | translate }}, {{ "Community contributors" | translate }}, {{ "Want some help? Click here to learn more and register. The Criminal Appeals Bureau prepares commutation applications for eligible clients individuals with excellent institutional records who have served more than half of their minimum term and are more than a year away from parole eligibility. Under a recent New York State law (CPL 160.59), some people may be able to get their criminal convictions sealed. Alfonzo Riley, pictured above, worked with the Defenders Clinic on his clemency application; he was granted clemency from Governor Cuomo in 2018 after 30 years in prison. George covers Brooklyn for THE CITY with a focus on criminal justice and housing. One of the social forces that convictions uses is the human need for safety and serving justice. Westchester County District Attorney's Office. Later, when he tried to recant, investigators with the DAs office told him that the DA would pursue the attempted murder charges if he disavowed his earlier statement. Elizabeth Felber, supervising attorney for the Legal Aid Society's Wrongful Conviction Unit, said she hopes the next head of the unit, Hale's replacement, comes from the defense community, as has been the practice in other jurisdictions in New York, such as . Two additional witnesses did not identify Cooper from a photo array. Inside the restaurant, Sims says he saw Graves take out a small shotgun, point it at the cashier, Li Run Chen, and shoot. 2023 The Legal Aid Society. In that case, officers were found to have planted evidence, falsified records and rewarded informants with drugs. Brooklyn, Manhattan, Queens, and Staten Island Trial Offices, the Homicide Defense Task Force Unit, Wrongful Conviction Unit, Parole Revocation Unit, and the Criminal Appeals Bureau. I expected the CRU to interview me, which would give me a chance to answer their questions and give a detailed account of seeing Julius shoot the victim., The CRU did not contact Sims to learn more about his claims. Criminology 40(1): 1-18; Huff C, Rattner A & Sagarin E 1986. Sims request to the CRU did not present any of the new claims that his attorneys have included in the current petition to vacate Sims conviction, including evidence of Hales misconduct and eyewitness testimony that Graves was the shooter. The collaboration between the Defenders Clinic and The Legal Aid Societys Wrongful Conviction Unit will help the next generation of social justice attorneys develop vital lawyering skills while increasing access to post-conviction legal representation. The representative is charged with ensuring equal protection of the law in police surveillance and police investigations and reporting any systematic and repeated violations of individuals civil [], In the summer of 2016, in the course of representing an Uzbek client who had been questioned by FBI agents, CUNYs Creating Law Enforcement Accountability & Responsibility Clinic (CLEAR) learned of Akram Djumaevs ordeal. The collaboration between the Defenders Clinic and The Legal Aid Society's Wrongful Conviction Unit will help the next generation of social justice attorneys develop vital lawyering skills while increasing access to post-conviction legal representation. Less than 24 hours after Chens murder, Sims was the primary suspect. Keisha and Kisha, along with Cooper and Collins, are championing Sims innocence. In 2016, Sims wrote a letter to the Brooklyn DAs conviction review unit, or CRU, asking them to investigate his case. "Most of our cases are 20 to 30 years old and the DNA technology has . Juvenile Rights Practice Entry Level Staff Attorney- Fall 2023. Many of the other officers had been convicted of crimes like perjury, disorderly conduct or civil liberties violations, including Oscar Sandino who pleaded guilty to forcing a woman he arrested to perform oral sex on him in a Queens police precinct bathroom in 2008. It was based almost entirely on Julius Graves recantation of his testimony in 2002. Wrongful conviction lawyers have submitted the case to the Queens DA's Conviction Integrity Unit. A jury of my peers found me guilty with the evidence that was presented to them and not the true facts., At the time, his sons were 4 and 5-years-old. Founded in 1876, the Society provides a full range of civil legal services as w. When he went to prison, his wife, Kisha, brought their children to visit every weekend. Last spring, several defense and civil rights organizations sent a letter to the citys five district attorneys and the special narcotics prosecutor, identifying 20 police officers who had been convicted of crimes and two others who had engaged in work-related misconduct. Professors and Defenders Clinic Co-Directors Steve Zeidman (left) and Nicole Smith-Futrell (right) discuss their work on clemency. New York, New York, United States . The move is part of an expansive effort by prosecutors across the city to review cases, even decades old, that involved discredited police officers. pay $21,500 to each of hundreds of demonstrators, shows that the Police Department paid $121 million. Although he did not pull the trigger and was actually nowhere near the shooting, he was charged under New York's controversial felony murder law and sentenced to 71 years to life. One eyewitness, who knew both Sims and Graves, called police and told them that she saw Graves, not Sims, running out of the restaurant with a gun in his hand, according to a report by Graves fiancee. In 2013, controversy over Hynes tactics helped Kenneth Thompson defeat Hynes. Elizabeth Felber, supervising attorney for the Legal Aid Societys Wrongful Conviction Unit, said she hopes the next head of the unit, Hales replacement, comes from the defense community, as has been the practice in other jurisdictions in New York, such as Queens and Westchester. For questions about registration, need-based scholarship, or for more information about this years conference email Jessica Goldthwaite The Legal Aid Societys DNA Unit. Email. Each of the NYC DA offices are currently reinvestigating our cases. Include a mailing address for the CRU to contact the convicted person or their attorney. Find job postings near you and 1-click apply! After the shooting, Graves told police that he took the gun home with him and wiped it down to remove fingerprints. DECISION AND ORDER BRENDA K. SANNES Chief District Judge. In April, the CRU also moved to vacate 90 convictions based on the testimony of disgraced NYPD narcotics detective Joseph Franco. It's the daily routine for Elizabeth Felber, Alfonzo Riley and Thomas McCall the trio that runs the Legal Aid Society's new Wrongful Conviction Unit, a small new bureau for New York City . but that police had threatened to charge him with Chens murder unless he testified against Sims. The Registry provides detailed information about every known exoneration in the United States since 1989cases in which a person was wrongly convicted of a crime and later cleared of all the charges based on new evidence of . The loss of that evidence could affect cases and people The Legal Aid Society represents who may have been wrongly convicted. The lawsuit, against the New York City Department of Buildings (DOB), the New York State Department of Homes and Community Renewal (DHCR), and individual landlords, now includes . A new review by the CRUunder a different directormay be Sims best chance at exoneration. The Wrongful Conviction Unit continues to grow in size and outreach since its inception in 2019. Students gain knowledge and first-hand practice experience in various criminal legal contexts, such as trial, post-conviction, parole, clemency, and reentry cases. Browse Resources . If you have a maximum of two convictions (one of which is a felony) that are more than 10 years old, you may be eligible to apply for sealing and representation in your application. The Legal Aid Society is taking precautions and implementing safety measures to help prevent the spread of COVID-19 and to comply with New York City's requirements concerning Covid-19. Sims experience wasnt an aberration. f Case 1:20-cv-08924-CM Document 741 Filed 09/16/22 Page 43 of 43. a. award plaintiffs, and the members of the class they seek to represent, punitive. At the Legal Aid Society of Westchester County, Sherry concentrates her practice on Criminal Defense. Read More. New York, NY 10013. Historically, the parole boards routinely denied parole to people who maintained their innocence because they were not accepting responsibility for crimes they did not commit. . (formerly Bashian & Farber, LLP), from November 2017 to September 2019, where she practiced criminal defense, general civil litigation and trusts & estates. On appeal, the conviction was overturned due to the wrongful admission of the interrogation. This is why our office consented to a hearing that would allow Mr. Sims to argue his claim of innocence before a judge, including a new contention, not made in previous motions, that his good friend was the alleged perpetrator and then conspired to frame him., But at trial, Sims defense counsel said that Graves, not Sims, was the perpetrator. All rights reserved. PHOTO CREDIT: Eagle Photo by Noah Goldberg. New York, NY 10038. The Legal Aid Society can assist with wrongful convictions, applications for commutation and pardon, and the sealing of past criminal records. 2023 The Legal Aid Society. In fact, Hale told the jury during closing arguments: Now you heard the summation of the defense Mr. Tims [Sim defense attorney] wants you to believe that Julius Graves is the perpetrator of this crime., In Sims 2016 letter to the CRUwhich he wrote himself, without legal counselhe said that he was innocent and included Graves recantation, but did not say he had witnessed Graves kill the victim. The Defenders Clinic at CUNY Law and The Legal Aid Society are committed to addressing the systemic inequities in the criminal legal system so that no one is denied their right to freedom and equal justice. View Case Acceptance Criteria. Alfonzo Riley, a paralegal in TheLegal Aid Societys Wrongful Conviction Unit, was recently profiled by The Appeal. Conviction Review Unit. Visit Us. This case presents a number of disputed factual and legal issues which are appropriately resolved in a court of law and not in the media, the statement said. Mr. Gonzalezs office will seek to dismiss the remaining cases over the next few weeks. With a backlog of 100+ potential clients, The Legal Aid Society will hire a Post-Graduate Fellow to work on the project, and the Defenders Clinic will add a paralegal. Donate today, Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations. At the time, all we knew was that he had been forced to give up his green card. 2023 The Legal Aid Society. The Project can also tell you if you are eligible for the many other types of record relief that can help to end the perpetual punishment of a conviction record. Heres what you should know to prevent wrongful discrimination. So, I appeared the next day and did whatever it was they wanted.. The Low Income Taxpayer Clinic (LITC) provides direct legal services to taxpayers who have personal income tax disputes with the Internal Revenue Service or the New York State Department of Taxation and Finance. After his testimony, however, the Brooklyn DAs office dropped the violation of probation. Citizens of society put their trust in the courts to keep communities safe. Biography Early life and education. When he was convicted, she told New York Focus, she thought that was the end of my world., In 2013, controversy over Hynes tactics helped Kenneth Thompson defeat Hynes. Today, DNA testing has developed to a point where reinvestigation, reanalysis, or retesting of biological evidence can help prove innocence. WCU hears directly from incarcerated persons seeking help, many have been in prison for over 20 years, and in many cases, evidence was collected but never tested. The U.S. Department of Justice has granted CUNY School of Law, in partnership with The Legal Aid Society, nearly $500,000 to establish a project that will review and litigate select wrongful conviction claims of New Yorkers incarcerated in state prisons. Heres what you should know about the new sealing law and the sealing process. CRUs are tasked with investigating convictions secured by their own officeoften the colleagues, friends and supervisors of CRU staff. This document answers many of the questions you may have about the new law. 111 Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd. 8th Annual Questioning Forensics Conference. c/o The Legal Aid Society But Graves 2002 statement said that he did not see who shot the victim and did not know who did, but that police had threatened to charge him with Chens murder unless he testified against Sims. It is free and automatic. In a trial that Sims and his attorneys say was marred by false testimony and improperly withheld evidence, Sims was convicted and sentenced to 25 years to life. During trial, a state witness testified that police had coerced him into implicating Campos, that he had later recanted his statement to Hale, and that he had failed a lie detector test. 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Public defenders and advocates for criminal justice reform say Sims case highlights an inherent problem with the Brooklyn CRU and similar conviction review units in DAs offices across the country, in which prosecutors serve as the gatekeepers for potentially innocent people seeking to overturn convictions that resulted from their own misconduct. The WCU is also currently collaborating with private firms and criminal justice advocates, such as Jeffrey Deskovic and Derrick Hamilton. At the Legal Aid Society, Riley is part of a team that reviews claims of innocence, working to help to those who were wrongfully convicted achieve the vindication they seek and deserve. In court filings and statements to the media, the Brooklyn DAs office has said Hale recused himself from reviewing Sims case. Supervising Attorney - Wrongful Conviction Unit at The Legal Aid Society Sidwell Friends High School, Northwestern University, Benjamin Cardozo School of Law View profile View profile badges 155, 156 taxation 148 trade union members, prohibited list of 365 trade unions, against 323, 394, 406 wrongful dismissal see under wrongful dismissal see also compensation declarations 58, 59, 274, 301, 366 agency workers 65 detriment: trade unionism . They rejected him. Nearly 75% of Defender Clinic students intern at The Legal Aid Society. Hale disclosed none of this to Coopers defense counsel, according to Coopers civil complaint. Subscribe to The Legal Aid Society's newsletters for campaign updates, case victories, client stories, and more. About half of them involved four officers who were involved in a corruption scandal that rocked the police departments narcotics operations in Brooklyn more than a decade ago. The concerns over his cases sparked the broader review in Brooklyn, as prosecutors began to examine past cases handled by other officers who were similarly charged and convicted of misconduct that was directly related to their jobs. His son began to sob. Of the Brooklyn cases, 331 were misdemeanor convictions and 47 were felonies. A new head of the unit, Sims and his attorneys hope, will give his case a fair review. There are many more men and women incarcerated in New York who I believe deserve clemency and who have moved toward transforming their lives from whatever moment or mistake that led to their incarceration, Riley said. The judge told them to keep going. From 2014 until Thompsons death in the fall of 2016, Brooklyns unit exonerated 21 people. The Bronx district attorney has also vacated more than 250 convictions that relied on a single officer, who has since been accused of lying in other cases. As ASA College prepares to shut its doors after years of controversy, New York continues to shell out tuition subsidies to for-profit colleges at rates higher than any other state. Beginning in 2021, the NYC District Attorneys offices have begun dismissing our clients cases where the officers involved in the prosecution were convicted of crimes relating to corruption. Make your contribution now and help Gothamist thrive in 2023. but did not discuss the year that she supervised the Conviction Review Unit before the Bureau was created. matter, or that someone stop behaving in a way that interferes with another . , the Brooklyn DAs office has claimed that Hale did not review Sims case. One witness for the prosecution, who was under arrest for an unrelated attempted murder, repeatedly told police he had no information on Coopers alleged involvement in the murder, according to Coopers civil complaint. Sims also says he told all his appellate attorneys that he saw Graves commit the crime; his one surviving appellate attorney confirmed this to his current counsel. A PRDU Staff Attorney represents clients accused of violating their conditions of release at administrative parole revocation hearings and recognizance hearings held in the criminal courts, federal detention facilities, hospital prison wards and, where applicable, local correctional . The strength of our criminal justice system depends on its accuracy its ability to convict the guilty and to clear the innocent. Provided direct support to NYC Department of Social Services (DSS) Commissioner - former long-time attorney-in-chief of NYC Legal Aid Society - including assisting with City Hall and senior staff . It was at that point, I forgave him, said Sims. Under a recent New York State law (CPL 160.59), some people may be able to get their criminal convictions sealed. The Legal Aid Society's Parole Revocation Defense Unit has an immediate opening for a Staff Attorney. I want to support him now because hes another one of the many individuals thats in there for something he didnt do, said Cooper. He and Graves then ran out of the restaurant. Tainted Testimony. Click here for a schedule of events and list of speakers. Skip to Job Postings. It will be held in-person in NYC on March 23 and 24 at the City of New York Law School in Queens, New York (CUNY). Catch up on the most important headlines with a roundup of essential NYC stories, delivered to your inbox daily. But this is not enough to protect an applicant to the CRU from an inherent conflict of interest, said Collins, who met Sims twenty-five years ago while they were both incarcerated in New York. Involved and accomplished at a range of pro-bono initiatives.Skilled in Legal Writing, Advocacy Appeals, Legal research Constitutional Law, Civil law, Criminal Law, Human rights law, Terrorism law, Evidence law, and Alternative Dispute Resolution. Legal Aid Society Wrongful Conviction Unit.

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