TIN news from 2001

Effective on December 3, 2001, the Texas Innocence Network was incorporated pursuant to article 3.02 of the Texas Non-Profit Corporation Act. Members of the TIN were profiled on the front page of the Dallas Morning News on 15 February 2001. The story is available online at: http://www.dallasnews.com/texas_southwest/287797_innocence_15te.html. Members of the TIN played principal parts in a German documentary, which focused on innocence projects at American law schools, including the Network at the University of Houston . The film is titled Wettlauf mit dem Henker (Race with the Executioner), and can be found at: http://www.zdf.de/wissen/37grad/41581/index.html

TIN news from 2002

News from 2002: Law Center students Kevin McAlpin and Karen Hamilton (who is also the Innocence Network's administrative assistant) were featured in a story in the Houston Chronicle on December 27, 2002. The story, under the headline "UH Network Offers Inmates Legal Remedy," discussed McAlpin's role in the Bud Sawyer case and Hamilton 's role in screening cases. Effective on November 12, 2002, the Texas Innocence Network and the Texas Defender Service (TDS) established the Texas Justice Alliance. The Executive Director of the TDS is Jim Marcus, a graduate of the University of Houston Law Center. The Texas Justice Alliance was established as a vehicle to permit the two organizations to pursue common objectives. University of Houston Law Center student Kevin McAlpin was featured on a Channel 2 news story (KPRC TV in Houston ) that aired on Monday, April 8, 2002. The story examined the Innocence Network's investigation into the case of Bud Sawyer, who appears to have been wrongfully convicted of murder. The text of the story can be found at the following link: http://www.click2houston.com/hou/news/stories/news-138757120020408-160414.html. In conjunction with the Texas Defender Service (http://www.texasdefender.org), the Innocence Network held its first annual fundraiser on Tuesday March 26, 2002, at the home of Richard and Ginni Mithoff. The event was moderated by former Judge Charles F. (Charlie) Baird, honored State Senator Rodney Ellis, and featured keynote speaker Barry Scheck. For information about future events, contact the innocence network at 713-743-7552 or innocence@central.uh.edu. A student investigative team consisting of Cathy Helenhouse , Mariana Ayus, and Ken Berry was featured as part of a three-part series that aired on the FOX news affiliate in Dallas . The student team investigated a case involving James Byrd, who was convicted of a robbery he insisted he did not commit. The team secured a videotaped confession from the actual robber - a confession that appears entirely to exonerate Mr. Byrd. Both Mr. Byrd and the confessor have since passed polygraph examinations. Mr. Byrd was subsequently represented, on a pro bono basis, by Dallas lawyer Jeff Kearney. The student team assisted Mr. Kearney and his associates in preparing a clemency petition for Mr. Byrd. The FOX news series appeared on the evening news on February 26, 27, and 28, 2002. It was subsequently broadcast on the FOX affiliate in Houston , and the story was picked up by the AP as well as CNN, and it aired on numerous other radio and television news shows. In addition, Bob Ray Sander, a columnist for the Fort Worth Star Telegram, devoted three of his columns to the case; they can be found at the following links: http://www.dfw.com/mld/startelegram/news/columnists/bob_ray_sanders/2848650.htm. http://www.dfw.com/mld/startelegram/news/columnists/bob_ray_sanders/2864005.htm http://www.dfw.com/mld/startelegram/news/columnists/bob_ray_sanders/2877832.htm In conjunction with the Texas Defender Service (http://www.texasdefender.org), the Texas Innocence Network sponsored a lecture and question-and-answer session by Sister Helen Prejean, author of Dead Man Walking, on Wednesday, January 23, 2002. The event was held in the Krost Hall auditorium at the University of Houston Law Center and was broadcast live on the world wide web. The speech can be viewed by clicking on any of the following links (use the first for 28 kbps, the second for 56, and the third for LAN): http://cybermedia.uh.edu:8080/ramgen/uhrm3/law/helen/helen_20020123_28.rm http://cybermedia.uh.edu:8080/ramgen/uhrm3/law/helen/helen_20020123_56.rm http://cybermedia.uh.edu:8080/ramgen/uhrm3/law/helen/helen_20020123_lan.rm A TIN team led by Kevin McAlpin filed a clemency petition on behalf of Bud Sawyer in January 2002. A copy of the petition is available by emailing innocence@central.uh.edu or by clicking on http://www.law.uh.edu/faculty/ddow2/dpage2/sawyer.doc.

TIN news from 2003

More than twenty-five University of Houston Law Center students enrolled in the Innocence Investigations course during the fall 2003 semester. They join nearly a dozen students from the University of St. Thomas , 8 students from Lamar University , and 3 students from the University of Texas School of Journalism in pursuing investigations on behalf of factually innocent inmates on behalf of the Texas Innocence Network. Mia Farrow, Aidan Quinn, Montel Williams, Larry Block, and Jim Bracchitta performed The Exonerated at the UH-Downtown campus, on Thursday, April 10, 2003. The performance benefited the Texas Justice Alliance, a partnership of the TIN and the Texas Defender Service. The event was orchestrated by Janice Adamson, with Seph Harris. The event chair was Judge Michol O'Connor. Artwork was created by Katya Glockner-Dow. The event honored fourteen lawyers who have represented seven Texas death row inmates who have been exonerated, some after coming within mere days of execution. On Wednesday March 5, 2003, Josiah Sutton was released on bail pending the resolution of his habeas petition alleging actual innocence as well as his clemency petition requesting a full pardon based on innocence. Sutton had served five years of a 35-year sentence for aggravated sexual assault. His conviction rested on testimony concerning DNA evidence; the testing was done by the Houston Police Department crime lab, and the witness who testified concerning the evidence was a scientist in that lab. Additional testing performed at the request of Sutton's counsel demonstrated that Sutton is innocent; the DNA evidence positively excludes him as a participant in the crime. The Innocence Network is representing Sutton and seeking to have his wrongful conviction set aside, either through the State's executive clemency process, or through habeas corpus litigation. Sutton finally received a pardon based on actual innocence in May 2004. Television station KHOU, the CBS affiliate in Houston , broke the story illuminating problems in the HPD crime lab. A link to Anna Werner's three-part series can be found at http://www.khou.com/news/defenders/investigate/page2.html. On the Monday before Christmas, December 23, 2002, James Byrd was released from prison. He had been sentenced to thirty years for robbery, but he had not committed the crime. He is shown here, outside of the prison, with Law Center student Cathy Helenhouse, the principal University of Houston Law student who worked on the case.

TIN news from 2004

TIN students have aggregated several thousand hours investigating the innocence of death row inmate Anthony Graves. Their efforts were profiled in two recent stories. One, in the Austin Chronicle, is available at http://www.austinchronicle.com/issues/dispatch/2004-10-08/pols_naked8.html. Another, in the Houston Chronicle, is available at this link.

In calling for a death penalty moratorium in Harris County, until the problems that have been plaguing the crime lab of the Houston Police Department have been solved, the Dallas Morning News on October 7, 2004, recognized the role of the Texas Innocence Network in preventing and correcting wrongful convictions in Texas. The third annual Texas Justice Alliance fundraiser honored Dick Burr and Mandy Welch. The event was held at Houston 's Alley Theatre. Eden Harrington chaired the planning committee, and Carolyn Farb was the honorary chair. The event raised more than $100,000, due in large part to the efforts of Professor Harrington and Dr. Farb. The TJA is grateful to them, and to all who attended. This year's annual Texas Justice Alliance fundraiser will be a benefit production of the hit off-Broadway play, The Exonerated. The play starts a run at Houston 's renowned Alley Theatre, and the TJA fundraiser will be on Thursday, September 30. To reserve a seat, call the Innocence Network office (at 713-743-7552) or register online at the following link: https://www.regonline.com/15441 The Texas Justice Alliance is grateful to host Carolyn Farb and special guests Phil Donahue and Marlo Thomas, who headlined a fundraising and educational benefit at Ms. Farb's home on Wednesday August 18, 2004. Recently exonerated Texas inmates, including Josiah Sutton, attended and told the crowd how important the efforts of the Texas Innocence Network are. On Friday, May 14, 2004, Texas Governor Rick Perry signed a Pardon based on Actual Innocence for Josiah Sutton, who was convicted of a rape that DNA proved he did not commit. Mr. Sutton served nearly five years of a prison sentence before being freed on a personal recognizance bond by the Honorable Joan Huffman. He then had to wait another fourteen months for the Texas Board of Pardons and Parole to recommend that the Governor grant his pardon. A copy of the clemency petition, prepared by the Texas Innocence Network, can be located at the following link: http://www.law.uh.edu/faculty/ddow2/dpage2/sutton.doc. More than 250 people attended the 2004 National Innocence Conference, held in Austin , Texas . One of the many current topics addressed was fingerprint evidence. The presentation of Ken Moses can be obtained through the following link: http://www.clpex.com/ The annual national meeting of innocence organizations from across the country will be hosted this year by the Texas Innocence Network. The meeting will be in Austin , Texas , at the new Austin Hilton Hotel, on April 23, 24, and 25, 2004. To register, contact the Texas Innocence Network, or register on-line at the following link: www.regonline.com/?11529 On Thursday, February 26, 2004, the Texas Coalition to Abolish the Death Penalty will hold an event featuring Sister Helen Prejean, author of Dead Man Walking, and actress Susan Sarandon, who played Prejean in the film Dead Man Walking, based on the book. The event will recognize the contributions that the Texas Innocence Network and the Texas Defender Service have made toward achieving justice in the Texas criminal justice system. At the annual meeting of the Texas Coalition to Abolish the Death Penalty (TDCAP), held in Dallas , Texas on January 10, 2004, David R. Dow accepted the Courage Award on behalf of the Texas Innocence Network, for its investigations into claims of innocence raised by death row inmates in Texas .

TIN news from 2005

April 2005 -- the annual meeting of innocence programs from around the country was held on the campus of the university of the district of Columbia School of law, in WashingtonD.C. the chair of this year's planning committee was Dan Medwed, of the Utah law school. Karen hamilton, deputy director of TIN, played a significant and even indispensable role in planning the logistics of the conference. Congratulations to all involved. 5 may 2005 -- TIN is pleased to announce the hiring of Cassandra Jeu. Jeu will become one of three deputy directors, concentrating principally on the administrative operation of the program. Karen Hamilton remains a deputy director, with principal concentration on non-death case investigations. Jared Tyler also remains a deputy director, with principal concentration on capital investigations and post-conviction litigation.

The Texas Innocence Network (TIN) at the University of Houston Law Center is a program that focuses exclusively on investigating claims of actual innocence raised by inmates in Texas or elsewhere. The TIN relies principally on law students to pursue factual investigation; the students work under the supervision of Professor David R. Dow or local attorneys. The twin aims of the TIN are pedagogical and service-oriented. From a pedagogic standpoint, the TIN gives students the opportunity to conduct non-scripted factual investigations. Students who enroll in the TIN class receive classroom instruction in conducting field investigations, interviewing witnesses, reviewing police and crime-scene records, crime-scene reconstruction, and the like. From a service standpoint, the TIN provides a resource for inmates who did not commit the crime for which they were sentenced. The TIN accepts cases involving DNA evidence as well as cases that do not. In death penalty cases, the TIN becomes involved once habeas counsel is appointed. In non-death penalty cases, the TIN does not become involved prior to the case's becoming final. Thus, except for death penalty cases, it is not until the direct appeal has concluded that the case is ripe for the TIN. In addition, the TIN does not represent inmates; instead, the TIN works in cooperation with the inmate's counsel, if the inmate is represented. For inmates who are not represented, if the TIN discovers evidence of actual innocence, the TIN assists the inmate in locating counsel to pursue post-conviction relief, including habeas corpus litigation or clemency proceedings. TIN does not accept cases by email or telephone. Hard copies of letters from inmates or their authorized agents are required to commence a case evaluation.

TIN news from 2006

July 2006 - A Texas Death Row case investigated by the University of Houston Law Center students, faculty, staff and volunteer journalists is heading to the U.S. Supreme Court, while recent successes have been scored on behalf of two other Death Row inmates where actual innocence is claimed. And, new trials have recently been granted in two significant non-capital cases in Texas prisons where similar investigations were conducted.

Prosecutors in the Washington County case against Anthony Graves, convicted in 1994 of capital murder, have appealed to the Supreme Court, seeking to reverse an order from the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals that granted Graves a new trial. The Fifth Circuit's opinion cited evidence, uncovered by students from the University of St. Thomas and the UH Law Center , that could exonerate Graves .

The investigations were conducted through the UH Law Center's Innocence Project, launched in 2000, and its companion outreach organization, the Texas Innocence Network, based at the Law Center and formed as a non-profit entity to include other schools and investigative groups.

Factual investigation by the Innocence Project and the Texas Innocence Network also led to a decision by the Fifth Circuit granting a new trial to Death Row inmate Max Soffar, convicted of a 1980 triple slaying at the Fair Lanes Bowling Alley in Houston . However, Soffar was convicted again, after the trial judge refused to admit into evidence facts that pointed to someone else as the killer. TIN is representing Soffar in his appeal.

The Texas Innocence Network is also currently representing Michael Toney in federal court on habeas corpus proceedings and won the right to return to state court based on the recent discovery of records that help prove his innocence of charges that sent him to Death Row. Toney was convicted for a 1985 bombing at Lake Worth in Tarrant County that left three people dead, a crime he has maintained he did not commit.

"Although we can be certain that society sends innocent people to prison, there is no organized way to correct these injustices," said David R. Dow, who heads up the University of Houston Law Center's Innocence Project and the Texas Innocence Network. "As a result, innocent prisoners must rely on efforts of students and volunteers. They come from law schools, journalism departments, and criminal justice programs to uncover and correct the mistakes the system makes," observed Dow, Professor at the University of Houston Law Center.

New trials have recently been granted in two non-capital cases investigated by the innocence programs. The Texas Court of Criminal Appeals has remanded the 1983 conviction of Billy Frederick Allen back to Dallas County for re-trial, based on a claim of actual innocence. Investigators located a dying declaration of the victim, identifying the true killer that was known to the first defense team but not brought up in court at the original hearing.

A new day in Texas courts was initially won in the case of Bud Sawyer, given a life sentence in a 1993 Harris County conviction for a shooting he claims was self-defense. While a state judge recommended a new trial for Sawyer based on the work of the innocence projects, legal procedural rules barred that action. As a result, the Texas Innocence Network and the UH Law Center 's Innocence project have filed a direct clemency petition to Governor Rick Perry, requesting the trial the judge has already approved.

The Texas Innocence Network played a supporting role when Ector County Juvenile Court Judge Jim Bobo granted freedom to a young man who had been convicted of murder in 1997 when he was 12 years old. The young man's release from Giddings State School on parole is based on a claim of actual innocence, a case reviewed by the TIN working with the Southwest Texas Juvenile Defender's Clinic. The case was ultimately won by Houston attorney Gail Lutz, a University of Houston Law Center graduate.

In addition to the UH Innocence project, TIN also works with the West Texas Innocence project, under the direction of Jeff Blackburn; the North Texas Innocence Project, under the direction of Mike Ware; and the University of St. Thomas investigative journalism program directed by Nicole Casarez.

Since its inception, the Texas Innocence Network has reviewed more than 6,000 cases. Currently, TIN staff members are reviewing more than 300 case files. Those cases that reveal possible material evidence of innocence are passed along to students at the participating programs, who then investigate the cases under the supervision of program directors and other local attorneys.

Financial support for the Texas Innocence Network, the UH Law Center Innocence Project, and other participating programs comes from major private foundation grants including the Atlantic Philanthropies, from an allocation by the Texas legislature, and contributions by private donors and volunteers.