Home : Death Penalty : Innocence

Innocent North Carolina Man Exonerated After 14 Years On Death Row (05/02/2008)
KENANSVILLE, NC – An innocent man who spent 14 years on North Carolina's death row after being wrongfully convicted for a 1987 murder will be released from prison today. Jones has been represented by American Civil Liberties Union Capital Punishment Project lawyers Cassandra Stubbs and Brian Stull, along with North Carolina attorney Ernest "Buddy" Connor.

ACLU and Texas Innocence Network Appeal Innocent Man's Death Sentence Based On Unfair Trial (10/24/2007)
AUSTIN, TX -- At a hearing today before the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals, the American Civil Liberties Union and the Texas Innocence Network (TIN) argued that death row inmate Max Soffar was unfairly prevented from proving his innocence at his second trial in 2006. The groups hope to overturn Soffar's conviction in the capital murder case of four victims shot during an armed robbery in a Houston bowling alley in 1980. In 1981, Soffar was convicted and sentenced to death, but a federal court overturned his conviction in 2004 because his trial lawyers failed to argue that Soffar's confession contradicted the account of the sole surviving witness and other reliable evidence in the case. The state of Texas retried Soffar last year and he was again convicted and sentenced to death.

High Court Halts Execution of Texas Death Row Prisoner, Saying Prosecutors Violated Ethical Duties (02/24/2004)
WASHINGTON - The United States Supreme Court today halted the scheduled execution of death row prisoner Delma Banks, Jr., saying that Banks was denied a fair trial 20 years ago when prosecutors withheld crucial exculpatory evidence from the defense.

Citing "Undue Risk" of Executing Innocents, Court Declares Federal Death Penalty Unconstitutional (07/01/2002)
NEW YORK-The American Civil Liberties Union today applauds U.S. District Judge Jed S. Rakoff for declaring that the federal death penalty is unconstitutional because it creates ""an undue risk of executing innocent people.""

ACLU Urges Legislation to Prevent Wrongful Conviction of Innocents (06/18/2002)
WASHINGTON - The American Civil Liberties Union today urged committees in both the House and Senate to support and quickly pass legislation designed to reduce the risk of innocent persons being wrongfully convicted or sentenced to death in America.

Innocents Saved from Death Row Join Lawmakers to Promote Study into Reducing the Risk of Death Penalty Mistakes (06/12/2002)
WASHINGTON - Three innocent men, recently exonerated and released from death row, today joined with lawmakers here to promote an independent federal study into potentially widespread incidences of innocent men and women being put to death by a faulty capital punishment system in America.

ACLU Encouraged By Rush of Republican Support for Innocence Protection; Urges House to Move Quickly and Prevent Further Innocent Executions (05/14/2002)
WASHINGTON - Encouraged by a recent onrush of support for a bill designed to reduce the number of innocent men and women who are mistakenly executed in America, the American Civil Liberties Union today said that Congress must act quickly to turn this legislation into law and combat such executions. 

Release of 100th Innocent From Death Row Underscores Urgent Need for Moratorium, ACLU Says (04/09/2002)
WASHINGTON--The release of Ray Krone, who spent over two years on Arizona's death row for a crime he did not commit, should be a wake-up call for elected officials and state leaders all across this country.  

ACLU Urges PA Lawmakers to Pass Legislation to Aid Wrongfully Convicted (03/26/2001)
PHILADELPHIA--The American Civil Liberties Union today urged the Pennsylvania General Assembly to enact legislation that would make it easier for wrongfully convicted individuals to prove their innocence. The ACLU of Pennsylvania called on lawmakers to pass Senate Bill 589, legislation that provides for post-conviction DNA testing. 

Ohio Bill Seeks Moratorium (07/13/2000)
COLUMBUS, OH -- Troubled by the increasing number of innocent people on death rows across the United States, a group of state lawmakers are attempting to put a moratorium on capital punishment in Ohio.

Texas Board's Failure to Halt Execution Of Gary Graham is Deplorable, ACLU Says (06/22/2000)
WASHINGTON -- The American Civil Liberties Union deplores the decision of the Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles to allow the execution of Gary Graham to go forward despite powerful evidence of his innocence.

ACLU Applauds Legislation To Protect the Innocent on Death Row (06/20/2000)
WASHINGTON -- The American Civil Liberties Union today applauded legislation under consideration by a House panel that would address the national problem of innocent people being sentenced to death.

Latest ACLU Advertisement Highlights Execution of Innocent Prisoners on Death Row (06/16/2000)
NEW YORK--In the midst of mounting evidence that America's system of capital punishment is seriously flawed, the latest American Civil Liberties Union advertisement highlights the price of this injustice: the execution of innocent prisoners.

ACLU Urges Committee to Broaden Examination of Death Penalty (06/13/2000)
"We must not send another person to the grave without allowing a simple test that could once and for all resolve any questions of whether they committed a crime," said Diann Rust-Tierney, Director of the ACLU's Capital Punishment Project. "But allowing DNA evidence is only one piece of the puzzle. Inexperienced, incompetent -- or even sleeping -- lawyers are often the only thing standing between many Americans and death row." 

ACLU Endorses House Legislation To Protect the Innocent on Death Row (03/30/2000)
"This bill demonstrates that there is growing understanding among both political parties that many people on death row are innocent, and that an inadequate defense is a reason they were sentenced to death in the first place," said Diann Rust-Tierney, Director of the ACLU's Capital Punishment Project. "The only thing that often stands between Americans and death row is an inexperienced, incompetent - or even a sleeping - lawyer. 

ACLU Endorses New Legislation To Protect the Innocent on Death Row (02/11/2000)
"Countries that routinely provide nothing more than a sham defense for those who face execution are condemned by our government for human rights violations," said Diann Rust-Tierney, Director of the ACLU's Capital Punishment Project. "Yet today the only thing standing between many Americans and death row is an inexperienced, incompetent - or even a sleeping - lawyer. 

ACLU of Illinois Praises Governor's Courage in Suspending State Death Penalty System (01/31/2000)
CHICAGO, IL--The American Civil Liberties Union is pleased by Governor Ryan's action today suspending application of the death penalty in Illinois. The sad and discredited capital punishment system in this state deserves not only a moratorium, but all-out abolition.