Innocence Project Urges Congress to Pass Justice For All Reauthorization Act of 2013 to Strengthen the Criminal Justice System

Contact: Alana Massie; amassie@innocenceproject.org

(New York, NY – April 14, 2014) The Innocence Project joins Sen. John Cornyn (R-TX) and Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-VT) in calling on the Senate to continue to work towards reauthorizing the Justice for All Act. In recognition of National Crime Victims’ Rights Week and National Sexual Assault Awareness Month, both Senators are urged reauthorization of the legislation last week.

The Justice for All Reauthorization Act encompasses a variety of initiatives to ensure safety and justice for women and men across the country. Among its many components, the legislation will improve and expand the DNA testing capacity of federal, state, and local crime laboratories, increase research and development of new DNA testing technologies and provide post conviction DNA testing. Together they serve the criminal justice system in ways greater than each of their parts.

The following can be attributed to Stephen Saloom, Senior Policy Advisor at the Innocence Project.

The Innocence Project strongly urges Congress to reauthorize the Justice For All Reauthorization Act in order to strengthen the safety and justice for men and women across the country. This legislation would provide critical support to a broad range of issues affecting the criminal justice system. The Kirk Bloodsworth Post-Conviction DNA Testing Grant Program alone has enabled the exoneration of 22 wrongfully convicted people and in turn has helped to identify the true perpetrators of 8 of those crimes. By helping to ensure that the system gets it right, the Justice for All Act protects everyone.

The bill was introduced on April 25, 2013, and the Senate Judiciary Committee passed it out of committee a few months later. Now the full Senate is considering passage of this critical legislation.

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