The measure would require that law enforcement agencies preserve crime scene evidence and conduct "blind" identification procedures -- in which the administering officer doesn't know the identity of the suspect. It would also open a path for people on parole to seek DNA tests that can prove innocence.

Although the bill has bipartisan support and the Governor has said he will sign it if passed, the Columbus Dispatch reports that progress seems to be delayed by a legislative logjam.

The delay has frustrated supporters, including Mark Godsey, director of the Ohio Innocence Project.

"All parties, including prosecutors, police, Democrats and Republicans, worked for years to create a consensus bill. It's a shame it's being delayed at this point," Godsey said, noting that the bill would help prevent convictions of innocent people.

Read the full story here. (Columbus Dispatch, 2/5/10)

If you live in Ohio, sign up for Innocence Project email updates today to receive breaking news and actions relating to this issue in the weeks ahead.

By Maggie Taylor, Senior Case Coordinator

Yesterday, I had the honor of sharing an incredible day with a person who had previously lived in my mind as handwriting, case documents and a very memorable name - Freddie Peacock. I first heard Freddie's name in 2005 when I evaluated his case for potential acceptance at the Innocence Project, and I was thinking of his letters yesterday as he finally achieved the exoneration he sought for so long.

In two weeks I'll celebrate my sixth anniversary with the Innocence Project, where I work in the intake and evaluation department. My job, and the job of eight wonderful colleagues in my department, is to help determine which cases the Innocence Project can accept. To do so, we reconstruct a case as best we can through documents: from the often-heartbreaking letters of prisoners and from lab reports, police reports, trial transcripts and other legal documents. We examine a case from every angle, looking for two things: a viable innocence claim and biological evidence that, if tested, should tell us if the person asking for our help is innocent. Our jobs, though fascinating and challenging, focus almost exclusively on lives on paper.

When Freddie first wrote to us, his request was different from many of the pleas we read. He needed our help to restore his good name. When I worked up Freddie's case in 2005, it was compelling not only for the biological evidence that could prove his innocence, but because he had been out of prison since 1982, and still fought for exoneration. In fact, Freddie had been off parole since 1992, and before that had voluntarily remained on parole because he thought he would have a better chance of proving his innocence.

He existed in my mind for years as a compelling story but he came to life when I met him on Wednesday. We arrived at his apartment on Wednesday afternoon and were greeted by Freddie, his sister Edith and his longtime friend and advocate Bill Marshall. Freddie, now 60, is a very tall man, with a genuine smile and brown tortoise shell glasses. Edith had just taken Freddie to the barber and they were planning his court outfit. Freddie picked up the tie he planned to wear the next day and handed it to Bill, who put it around his own neck, tied it, and put it on Freddie to check the length.

Freddie sat quietly as staff attorney Olga Akselrod and Cardozo student Jess Smith walked him through what would happen on exoneration day. As Edith, who was to be the family's official spokesperson at the press conference, prepared for difficult questions, we heard about how Freddie's wrongful conviction had affected the family. She talked about how worried she had been when Freddie went into prison. She feared Freddie's mental illness would make him a target of violence, and I thought about the scores of other inmates with mental illnesses who write to us for help.

The courthouse the next day was flooded with reporters and camera operators. The hearing was brief. Edith cried with relief as soon as the judge began signing the paper vacating Freddie's conviction. Olga asked for just three or four minutes to talk about Freddie's ordeal on the record; the judge granted two. No apologies were offered to Freddie. At the end of the hearing the judge wished Freddie luck, and we filed out of the courtroom just ten minutes after we had entered. Edith turned to her friend Jeanette, who had accompanied her, and said how glad she was it was all over, Jeanette silently tucked Edith's hair behind her ear.

At the press conference Olga praised Freddie for his spirit and tenacity in proving his innocence. She noted how terrifying it is to keep reaching out for relief to the same system that wronged you. Innocence Project Co-director Peter Neufeld pressed for laws mandating the recording of interrogations to help prevent false confessions, like the one Freddie allegedly gave police over three decades ago. Freddie sat with his head down, staring at his hands in his lap, as his sister described the burden of his wrongful conviction.

After the press conference we called the Innocence Project office so the staff and students could congratulate Freddie, an Innocence Project ritual. When Freddie said hello he was greeted with applause and cheers. He beamed, and laughed, and his sister told everyone on the line, "Y'all are family now." I've been one of those voices cheering from the other end of the line on many occasions, and it was great to see that call from the other end, how happy it seemed to make Freddie and his sister.

Freddie's family held a party after the hearing in the rec room of Freddie's apartment complex. Freddie's family and friends gathered for lasagna, chicken, fruit and sandwiches. Freddie joked with everyone and talked about basketball with Peter, who noted that he and Freddie were the same age and had the same basketball heroes. Freddie's pastor, who was out of town and couldn't make it to the exoneration, called in with congratulations. Freddie cut a white sheet cake with blue roses that said, "Congratulations, Freddie, it's been a long journey."

Innocence Project supporters around the world are marking the 250th exoneration by sending letters to newspaper editors in their communities, calling for reforms to prevent future injustice. Send yours here.

Here's a selection of media coverage of yesterday's exoneration:

New York Times: Vindication Now Arrives After a Battle of 28 Years

Los Angeles Times: DNA Evidence Clears NY Man

Rochester Democrat and Chronicle: Article and Video

Dozens more news outlets, TV stations and blogs around the country carried Peacock's story. Notable blog posts included Simple Justice, The Root, The Agitator, Overbrook Foundation and Black Voices.

To mark the 250th exoneration, the Innocence Project released a new report today: "250 Exonerated, Too Many Wrongfully Convicted." Supporters around the country are amplifying the call for reform by sending letters to editors of local newspapers -- send yours here.

Peacock, 60, served more than five years in New York prisons for a rape he didn't commit before he was released on parole in 1982. For the next 28 years, he fought to clear his name -- even trying to refuse the end of his parole because he thought that remaining in the criminal justice system might make it easier for him to prove his innocence.

"Freddie Peacock was released many years ago, but he hasn't been truly free because the cloud of this conviction hung over him," Olga Akselrod, the Innocence Project Staff Attorney handling the case, said today.

Peacock's wrongful conviction sheds light on two of the most common causes of wrongful convictions: eyewitness misidentification and false confessions. Peacock, who has serious mental illness, was arrested and charged with raping a neighbor in 1976 based in part on a questionable eyewitness misidentification. Although he told police that he had been hospitalized for mental illness, they proceeded to interrogate him, eventually alleging that he confessed to the crime, though he could not tell officers where, when or how the victim was raped. He was tried and convicted of the crime and sentenced to up to 20 years in prison.

Learn more about Peacock's case and take action today by sending a letter to your local newspaper.

Commission Chairman John Bradley committed, however, to discussing the case at the committee's next meeting, set for April 23 in El Paso.

"Yes, they will be on the agenda. Yes, they will be discussed," Bradley said, referring to open cases under review.

Innocence Project Policy Director Stephen Saloom, who attended the meeting, noted that Bradley attempted to develop new procedures that would have given him more power, but members of the commission insisted that the new rules clearly call for consent and approval from the group:

"The rules Mr. Bradley proposed create needless bureaucracy, steer the commission away from the Legislature's intent, limit the commissioners' authority and vest more power in him as the chair," Saloom told the Associated Press.

And Houston Chronicle columnist Rick Casey wrote today about Bradley's decision to bar a documentary film crew from the meeting room, which was reversed 90 minutes after the meeting began:

Bradley evicted an Austin-based documentary crew before the meeting started. One of its members called the attorney general's office in Austin, which sent a message to Barbara Dean, the assistant district attorney who has attended all of the commission's meetings, providing legal guidance since its inception.

An hour and a half into the meeting, Dean, seated behind Bradley, tapped him on the shoulder and quietly spoke into his ear. He announced a 10-minute break, and when the meeting resumed the film crew was in the room.

Read more about Friday's meeting:

Associated Press: Texas Panel Meets, Skips Talk of Willingham Case

The Monitor: Forensics Panel Dodges Discussion of Controversial Execution

The Innocence Project is streaming today's meeting live online. Watch here from 9:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. CST.

Learn more about the Willingham case and the commission's work.

The web stream was made possible by our pro bono partners at Unicorn Media and the producers at Rio Bravo Films.

In other Texas news, Hank Skinner is set to be executed in Texas Feburary 24 despite his pending requests for DNA tests that could prove his innocence. Students at the Medill Innocence Project have been investigating the case and the Texas Tribune ran a two-part story this week.

Still more news from Texas: new evidence suggests that prosecutors coached a witness to identify an innocent man in 1995. Richard Miles was freed last year after 14 years in prison based on new evidence of his innocence. The main witness against him at trial now says he was coached by prosecutors. The prosecutors denied the allegations.

A Michigan man who has been in prison for 25 years for a murder he says he didn't commit could get a parole hearing soon, state officials said.

Evidence was sent to be testing in the case of Indiana prisoner Willie T. Donald, who has served nearly two decades for a crime he has always said he didn't commit.

The U.S. Supreme Court dismissed a challenge to its decision last year in Melendez-Diaz that defendants have the right to cross-examine forensic analysts who conducted tests in their case.

A new rule in New York allows police to conduct investigations based on partial DNA matches. The rule was enacted despite arguments from the New York Civil Liberties Union that it should have gone before the legislature.

Reversing an earlier decision, a Los Angeles hiring committee this week approved 27 new forensic analyst positions in an effort to reduce the city's backlog of untested rape kits.

Vance, who took office three weeks ago following former DA Robert Moganthau's retirement after 35 years in the office, said he has already set up working groups to address the most common causes of wrongful convictions. He said he is working to address eyewitness misidentifications and forensic problems, and that he had formed a prosecution integrity panel "to make sure we follow best practices at the beginning of cases and in training."

Innocence Project Co-Director Barry Scheck joined Vance on a panel yesterday at the New York Bar Association's annual "President's Summit."

Read more here.

The Innocence Project filed a motion in a Pennsylvania court this month revealing the new test results, which show DNA from a man other than Oliver, and seeking additional tests that could resolve any doubts about Oliver's innocence. Prosecutors have agreed to allow DNA testing to go forward, and the Innocence Project will pay for the tests at a private laboratory.

Oliver was convicted in 1991 of the rape and murder of an 11-year-old girl. His conviction was based in part on a two-page confession he signed following a police interrogation. He later said he signed the papers without reading them after being forced to do so by a police officer. The interrogation was not recorded.

Ten people have been exonerated through DNA testing in Pennsylvania - four of whom gave false confessions or admissions to crimes they did not commit. The Pennsylvania Innocence Project has joined the Innocence Project in representing Oliver. Watch a video interview about the case with Pennsylvania Innocence Project Legal Director Marissa Bluestine here.

Former Navy SEAL trainee Dustin Turner was convicted of 1995 murder he has always said he didn't commit, and his conviction was tossed out last year based on the confession of a fellow Navy SEAL. The state is appealing his case, and the Virginia Court of Appeals heard oral arguments this morning. But yesterday Turner's mother, Linda Summit, was thinking of others like her son.

The law is too narrow to be effective, she said, pointing to examples of people like Arthur Lee Whitfield, who was exonerated through DNA testing and eventually pardoned, but not eligible for a writ of actual innocence under the 2004 law because it only applies to prisoners.

"At least we have that avenue," Summit told the Virginian-Pilot. "Why I'm here today is, other people don't have that avenue. I'm here advocating for them,"

A bill before the Virginia House of Delegates would expand access to the writ of actual innocence to people who have been pardoned or paroled, would make them eligible for state compensation and restore their civil rights - including the right to vote, serve on juries and run for office.

Read the full story here. (Virginian-Pilot, 1/26/10)

Massachusetts is one of three states without a law allowing post-conviction DNA access for prisoners, and if the prosecutor hadn't agreed to DNA tests, Maher may still be behind bars today. A recent report from a Boston Bar Association task force comprised of police, prosecutors, defense attorneys and former judges called for Massachusetts to become the 48th state with a DNA access law.

In an op-ed in today's Patriot-Ledger, Maher calls on lawmakers to act now to ensure that more innocent people don't languish behind bars in the state because they can't get access to tests that could prove their innocence. He writes:

My case shows why this matters, and the Boston Bar Association shows why it has such broad support. All that's left now is for the state Legislature and the governor to act on it.

Read the full op-ed, and learn more about Maher's case.

Greg Taylor has been in prison in North Carolina for 17 years for a crime he has always said he didn't commit. A hearing in his case is set for February 9, and a three-judge panel this week denied prosecutors' request for a delay.

A Wisconsin man seeking to overturn his conviction for a murder he says he didn't commit was denied a new trial by a state judge this week. A recent book tells the stories of Rey Moore and five other men convicted in the case.

We wrote last week about the exoneration of Michael Tillman in Chicago based on evidence of his innocence and signs that he was tortured into making a false confession. The New York Times reported that more than 20 other African-American men who say they were tortured by Chicago police during the same period remain behind bars today.

Questions continue to swirl around the accuracy and reliability of polygraph tests and voice-stress analysis, but a report in Ohio found that thousands of law enforcement agencies across the country still use the devices regularly.

A package of reforms addressing the causes of wrongful convictions and aiming to prevent injustice passed an Ohio House committee and is headed for a vote by the House.

DNA testing is being used more frequently in property crimes. Every day we see stories in the press of DNA testing in home burglaries (like this one today in New Hampshire). Officials in Dallas, Texas are on the cutting edge of using DNA tests to solve car thefts. Dallas County recently received a $500,000 to expand the program.

A new paper from Richard Leo and Jon Gould argues that the legal community should give social science research more weight in determining the causes of wrongful convictions and fixing the system to prevent future injustice.

Psychology Today blogger Art Markham explored the best ways to conduct lineups when one of the perpetrators has a scar or other identifying characteristic.

Exoneree Dennis Fritz was in Washington, D.C. this week participating in an American Association for the Advancement of Science panel focused on survivors of human rights violations.

The Fort Bend County Sheriff's office said 63-year-old deputy Keith Pikett's decision to retire was not related to pending lawsuits against him. Sheriff Milton Wright did say, however, that demand for Pikett's services handling scent-tracking dogs had declined following recent negative reports. "The adverse publicity has certainly shut him down - at least out of county," Wright told the Associated Press.

For more than 20 years, Pikett has trained police dogs and conducted more than 2,000 "scent lineups" - procedures in which dogs examine a group of scents, including a suspect's, to determine if any match a scent from the crime scene.

At least three lawsuits allege that Pikett's dogs picked innocent people, leading to wrongful arrests. All three cases were dropped before trial. Additionally, a report from the Innocence Project of Texas in September questioned the accuracy of scent lineups and alleged that Texas prosecutors use Pikett's scent lineups to confirm suspicions about a suspect.

New commission chair John Bradley said he wants to focus first on commission procedures, but the Innocence Project and the former panel chairman said the group's work has been delayed too long. Innocence Project Co-Director Barry Scheck told the Associated Press that the January 29 agenda "deflects attention from what everybody wants answered" and former commission chairman Sam Bassett said the panel is "unnecessarily delaying the investigations we had going."

The commission was scheduled to hear in October from an arson expert on evidence in the case of Cameron Todd Willingham, who was executed in 2004 despite strong evidence of his innocence. Before the October meeting could be held, however, Gov. Perry replaced Basset and three other commission members. The group hasn't met since then.

Visit the Texas Forensic Science Commission website to download the full agenda for the January 29 meeting in Harlingen, Texas.

We hope to broadcast the meeting live on the Internet, check the Innocence Blog next week for details.

"The Wronged Man," a moving new Lifetime film, tells the story of Calvin Willis' wrongful conviction in Louisiana and the fight to free him. The movie premieres on Lifetime Movie Network Sunday night at 8 p.m. ET and plays again Monday night, January 18, at 8 p.m. ET.

Watch a trailer here and find Lifetime Movie Network in your local listings.

Calvin Willis served more than 21 years in Louisiana prisons for a child rape he didn't commit before DNA testing obtained by the Innocence Project proved his innocence and led to his exoneration. For 15 years, a paralegal named Janet "Prissy" Gregory advocated on Willis' behalf, filing appeals for a new trial and raising money to pay for DNA testing. Gregory is played in the film by Julia Ormond. Willis is played by Mahershalalhashbaz Ali. Pictured above is a scene from the film with Ormond (left), Tonea Stewart (playing Momma Newton, the grandmother who raised Calvin) and Ali.

Learn more about Willis' case. Watch an Innocence Project video of Willis' reunion with long-time friend and fellow exoneree Rickie Johnson.

Airing with the film is a new Public Service Announcement featuring Julia Ormond on wrongful convictions and the work of the Innocence Project. Watch the PSA here.

Did you see the film? Share your thoughts with other viewers here.

James Bain served 35 years in Florida prisons for a rape he didn't commit before DNA testing obtained by the Innocence Project of Florida led to his exoneration in December. On Monday, he will ring the Liberty Bell in Philadelphia in a celebration of one of his heroes, Martin Luther King, Jr.

Oklahoma State Sen. Constance Johnson filed a bill yesterday that would create a commission to study the causes of wrongful convictions and recommend reforms to address them.

A wave of drug-related crime has led to a spike in demand for forensic tests in Mexico. Educational opportunities for aspiring forensic analysts are expanding as well.

British exoneree Sean Hodgson could receive several million Pounds in compensation after serving 27 years in U.K. prisons for a crime he didn't commit. He spoke with the BBC this week about the challenges of life after exoneration.

A new paper from University of Houston Law Center Professor Sandra Guerra Thompson explores how state courts across the U.S. have handled evidence of eyewitness misidentifications.

Prosecutors joined with Tillman's attorney in asking a judge to overturn his conviction today, citing a "forced confession." Tillman says police officers waterboarded him with 7-Up, punched him in the face and stomach until he vomited blood and put a plastic bag over his head to force him to admit to a crime he didn't commit. Burge, who was a Chicago police officer from 1970 until he was suspended in 1991, is facing federal charges for his alleged role in wrongful conviction cases.

"It felt good, and I'm glad justice finally prevailed," Tillman said after being released.

Read the full story here. (Chicago Sun-Times, 01/14/10) and watch video coverage of Tillman's release (NBC Chicago)

False confessions have played a role in 25% of wrongful convictions later overturned through DNA testing. Recording of interrogations can prevent this injustice. Read more here.

Two years ago this week, Ronald Gene Taylor (left) was officially exonerated of a Texas rape after serving 12 years in prison.

DNA testing could have been conducted before his trial, but an analyst from the Houston Police Department Crime Lab testified incorrectly that there was no biological evidence to test. It would be more than a decade before this error was corrected.

Early in the morning of May 28, 1993, a woman awoke in her Houston apartment to find a man holding a knife to her neck. She was unable to break free, and the man raped her on her bed before fleeing the apartment. During the investigation, Houston police officers collected the sheet from the victim's bed, specifically noting a wet spot. Although the woman initially said she could not identify the perpetrator, she was allowed to watch a videotaped lineup at her home nearly six weeks after the crime, where she picked Taylor, after suddenly remembering that the perpetrator had a missing tooth. In 1995, Taylor was convicted by a jury of sexual assault and sentenced to 60 years in prison.

The Innocence Project took on his case in 2006 and sought DNA testing on the same sheet that reportedly contained no evidence to test. Semen was identified on the sheet and, and the results didn't only exonerate Taylor, they also pointed to the identity of the real perpetrator.

Taylor's case underlined ongoing forensic problems in Houston. In 2002, the HPD Crime Lab came under scrutiny for faulty forensic practices and the DNA lab was shut down while an independent review was conducted. The review revealed startling deficiencies in the DNA unit, ranging from poor documentation to serious analytical and interpretive errors that resulted in highly questionable results through the use of inaccurate and misleading statistics.

According to the review, standard operating procedures "consisted of procedures and reference materials cobbled together over time without periodic re-evaluation and reorganization. There were few technical reviews of analysts' work, including review of their test results, interpretation of data, and reporting." The lack of oversight likely resulted in serious misconduct, including at least four cases of fabrication of scientific results, called "drylabbing," which the report called the "the most egregious form of scientific misconduct that can occur in a forensic science laboratory," and a "hanging offense" in the scientific community. Read the full independent report here.

Although the Houston lab has made strides since 2002, such as receiving national accreditation in 2006, it still has a long way to go. The lab closed again in 2008 after its chief resigned over staff training problems. Recently, new questions have been raised about the lab's fingerprinting procedures. Taylor is one of three people exonerated through DNA testing after being wrongfully convicted based on faulty tests from the lab, and another pending case could lead to an exoneration.

Meanwhile, in the two years since his release, Taylor has begun to build a new life. Shortly after being freed, he married his long-time fiancée, Jeanette Brown. The couple lives in Atlanta.

Other Exoneration Anniversaries This Week:

Larry Fuller, Texas (Served 19.5 years, Exonerated 1/11/07)

Gregory Wallis, Texas (Served 17 years, Exonerated 1/10/07)

Ricardo Rachell, Texas (Served 5.5 years, Exonerated 1/14/09)

Rickie Johnson, Louisiana (Served 25 years, Exonerated 1/14/08)

Dale Brison, Pennsylvania (Served 3.5 years, Exonerated 1/14/94)

Now, Gates says, comes the hard part. He hasn't really had the time to be too happy about his release or bitter about his incarceration. His energy is too focused on the struggle to get back on his feet with no money, no job and a family he doesn't know very well anymore.

For Gates, everything is smaller and more compact. Large computers and rotary phones have been replaced with handheld, push-button devices. Boxy Cadillacs and Buicks have been replaced with SUVs and compact cars. And those bulky, heavy television sets that were the biggest pieces of furniture in a room have morphed into sleeker models mounted on a wall.

"Things are very different now, and I have to get used to it. It's strange. But if feels so good. Man, it feels very good." With that, Gates fell against the back of his chair and let out a laugh that seemed to come from his toes.

Read the full story here. (Washington Post, 01/09/10)

Gates was convicted based in part on testimony from FBI forensic analyst Michael P. Malone, who said that a hair from the crime scene matched Gates' hair. A 1997 Justice Department investigation found, however, that Malone and 13 other analysts made false reports and conducted faulty tests.

Faulty hair analysis and other unvalidated forensic evidence have played a role in half of the wrongful convictions overturned to date through DNA testing. Take action to support federal forensic reform at the Just Science Coalition website.