The Illinois Innocence Project, based at the University of Illinois Springfield, has exonerated ten clients so far. They have over 2,000 prisoners seeking their services, and about 40 cases they are currently working on. The group has a limited staff plus volunteers who are largely comprised of students and lawyers working pro bono. Executive Director, John Hanlon, joined us to talk about recent developments and upcoming events.
Hanlon says it's important to note that the non-profit deals strictly with what they call "actual innocence." Tune in to hear about that and much more:
In this interview, Hanlon tells us about recent news regarding a client charged with arson and murder. Per a press release:
Today a DuPage County judge vacated the 1997 conviction of William (Bill) Amor, a client of the Illinois Innocence Project at the University of Illinois Springfield, and ordered a new trial in the arson murder case. The victory comes after a week-long post-conviction hearing was held the week of December 12, 2016, in DuPage County, where attorneys presented new arson-related scientific evidence in the 1995 Naperville arson case.
Hanlon talks about an online course on 'The Innocence Movement' that is free and open to the public. He also tells us about the Police Training Institute.
* Here's info on a free showing of "The Central Park Five" PBS Documentary, on Wednesday April 12th:
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* Also - the annual Defenders of Innocent Awards Banquet is coming up at the end of the month. Click here for more information. Guests include:
- Yusef Salaam, one of the “Central Park Five” exonerated by DNA after being wrongfully convicted for the brutal rape and assault of a woman who became known as the “Central Park Jogger”
- Sharonne Salaam, mother of Yusef, who fought tirelessly to prove her son’s innocence