This Week in Innocence News

Here are some of this week’s news highlights:

Exonerees call for recorded interrogations bill in Kansas
Kansas Exonerees Floyd Bledsoe and Eddie James Lowery penned an op-ed emphasizing the need for a recorded interrogations bill in the state. (The Leavenworth Times)

New York governor commutes sentence of Innocence Project client
New York Governor Andrew Cuomo commuted the sentence of Innocence Project client Felipe Rodriguez, who served 26 years in prison for a 1987 murder he maintains he did not commit. (WABC)

Commission urges Texas lawmakers to implement wrongful conviction reforms
The Timothy Cole Exoneration Review Commission asked the Texas legislature to take steps to prevent wrongful convictions by enacting reforms included recorded interrogations. (Austin American-Statesman)

Illinois man exonerated of 1992 rape
A judge vacated the rape conviction of William Carini after DNA testing of evidence excluded him as a perpetrator. Carini served 25 years in prison. (Chicago Tribune)

Virginia governor proposes reforms
Virginia Governor Terry McAuliffe proposed a bill that would make any felon eligible to petition the court based on new DNA evidence, regardless of whether they took a plea deal. (Washington Post)

DOJ issues new recommendations for eyewitness identification procedures
The Department of Justice issued a memo to federal law enforcement agencies and prosecutors recommending that all departments adopt eyewitness identification procedures that have been scientifically proven to reduce misidentification. (NPR)