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Tuesday, November 04, 2008
Courts - "Justices Agree to Consider DNA Case"
Adam Liptak reports today in the NY Times that the SCOTUS "agreed Monday to decide whether people convicted of crimes have a constitutional right to test DNA evidence that could prove their innocence." More:
The case pits the value of finality in criminal cases against the possibility of proving an inmate’s innocence long after trials and appeals are concluded.For more, see this entry from The Volokh Conspiracy blog.In April, the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, in San Francisco, ordered prosecutors in Alaska to turn over DNA evidence that had been used to convict William G. Osborne of kidnapping and raping a prostitute. The appeals court said that biological evidence — hairs and semen — could be subjected to more sophisticated DNA testing than had been used by the prosecution to implicate Mr. Osborne. * * *
The federal government and 44 states — but not Alaska — have laws allowing post-conviction DNA testing. * * *
The Supreme Court has in earlier cases left open the question of whether people convicted after fair trials may nonetheless file federal claims based solely on evidence that they are in fact innocent.
Barry Scheck, a director of the Innocence Project at Cardozo School of Law, which represents Mr. Osborne, said he could not understand why prosecutors in Alaska have opposed testing.
“The State of Alaska concedes that DNA testing could prove William Osborne’s innocence, while fighting his right to testing,” Mr. Scheck said. “Why would anyone be afraid to learn the truth in this case? There is no rational reason to deny DNA testing that could prove innocence or confirm guilt.”
Posted by Marcia Oddi on November 4, 2008 09:11 AM
Posted to Courts in general