Uncovering the Innocence Project: What is it and Why Was it Created?

Barry C. Founded The Innocence Project in 1992, and soon a small team of lawyers, volunteers, and students began tackling innovative legal cases to release wrongfully convicted individuals at a law clinic at the Cardozo Law School. Thanks to the support of a group of visionary philanthropists, the Innocence Project became an independent nonprofit organization in 2004 and is still affiliated with Cardozo today. The Innocence Project's commitment to preserving the fair and equitable use of science in criminal trials is one of the many reasons why innocent people seek help when they are wrongfully convicted.

The National Association for Civilian Oversight of Law Enforcement (NACOLE) and the Innocence Project have expressed their mutual support for each other's work and are dedicated to collaborating to prevent wrongful convictions and improve police practices. It is estimated that 1% of all prisoners are innocent, meaning that there are more than 20,000 innocent people in prison. The important partnership and collaboration between NACOLE, its members and the Innocence Project, which includes the entire Innocence Network, will push the nation towards a fairer and more infallible criminal justice process. It is essential to note that The Innocence Project is not associated with an organization operating under the name “American Innocence Project”, and the American Innocence Project is not authorized to request funding under the name of Project Innocence.

The Innocence Project is a founding member (along with several longtime partners) of the Innocence Network, an association of independent organizations working to overturn wrongful convictions and improve the criminal justice system. The Innocence Project supports local and state commissions to ensure that forensic centers have the necessary resources to carry out quality work, and advocates for the full application of existing forensic standards. The Innocence Project, of the Cardozo Law School of Yeshiva University, is a national litigation and public policy organization devoted to exonerating people wrongfully convicted through DNA testing and other scientific advances, as well as reforming the criminal justice system to prevent future injustices. The Innocence Project works to correct and prevent unjust convictions and imprisonment of innocent people.

The Innocence Project is also committed to introducing improvements such as, among others, the adoption of fundamental procedural reforms to improve the accuracy of identification of eyewitnesses, the electronic recording of all interrogations in serious crime cases in their entirety, the removal of all restrictions on post-conviction DNA testing, and the promotion of forensic scientific research and scientifically developed standards. By entering your phone number, you agree to receive regular text messages from The Innocence Project. However, The Innocence Project is not equipped to handle case requests or inquiries by email or phone.

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