As advancements in DNA forensic techniques cause the nation to examine the accuracy and equity of its courts, some students at the School of Law are taking an active role in rectifying the shortcomings of the judicial system and may see their first case taken up in court this year.
The Duke Innocence Project, now in its third year, uses the law school's student and faculty resources to review the cases of prisoners who feel they have been wrongly convicted. The project is affiliated with the North Carolina Center for Actual Innocence, a collaborative regional effort between the law schools of Duke and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill as well as UNC's School of Journalism and Mass Communication.
The Duke project, under the direction of program advisor James Coleman, senior associate dean of the law school, receives approximately 10 to 15 letters weekly requesting legal assistance.
"Honestly I've read so many cases in the past year that any number of them could make a pretty good movie," said Walter Buzetta, a second-year law student and senior case manager for the program. "Unfortunately we're not necessarily looking for every case of innocence; we're looking for the best one."
The Duke Innocence Project has accepted eight cases for active investigation to date, one of which is expected to go to court sometime this academic year and will represent the first case brought to court by the North Carolina Center for Actual Innocence.
The case concerns the murder of a convenience store owner in eastern North Carolina in 1976 where a local mechanic, 38 years old at the time and a father of seven, was accused of shooting the owner with a shotgun. Investigators found a spent shotgun shell in his car the day of the murder, but North Carolina's current medical examiner has since determined that the victim was in fact killed with a handgun, not a shotgun, implying the mechanic's innocence.
"It's just amazing how many things could go wrong and how often that happens," said third-year law student Kendra Montgomery-Blinn, former student director of the Duke Innocence Project. "It's disappointing because you want to have faith in the legal system, but it's also motivating because you don't want it to be that way."
An exoneration of the mechanic would be a benchmark achievement for the project and would represent the culmination of over a year of investigation and research. The process is generally slow and deliberate because if new evidence is introduced in the defense of the convicted and the appeal is not granted, it is difficult, if not impossible, to use that evidence in a future appeal, Buzetta explained.
The North Carolina Center for Actual Innocence, which is currently funded by external donations and modest financial support from Duke and UNC, will likely solicit a local attorney to accept the case on a pro bono basis if it goes to court.
Peter Weitzel, founder of the center and former managing editor of The Miami Herald, became interested in criminal justice issues while working at the Herald with Gene Miller, a Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist whose work resulted in the release of three individuals who were wrongly convicted. Weitzel also teaches a course at the UNC School of Journalism and Mass Communications on investigative journalism.
"I saw the work that Gene did and appreciated its importance and uniqueness," said Weitzel, whose local involvement was spurred by conversations with Coleman, who is also a neighbor.
"There is a tremendous inequity in the justice system," Weitzel said. "If you've got the ability and capacity to do something about it, then I think the natural inclination is to step forward and see what you can do."
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