History Of The Innocence Protection Act
106th
Congress:
February 10,
2000: After devoting nearly a year to evaluating flaws in the
administration of the death penalty nationwide, Senator Patrick
Leahy (D-VT) introduces the Innocence Protection Act of 2000
(S.2073), a package of reforms that address many of the worst
problems.
April 4, 2000:
Representatives Bill Delahunt (D-MA) and Ray LaHood (R-IL) introduce
the Innocence Protection Act in the House (H.R.4167) with 81
bipartisan cosponsors.
June 12, 2000:
A groundbreaking study on flaws in the administration of capital
punishment, A Broken System: Error Rates in Capital Cases,
1973-1995,' is published by professors at Columbia University. The
study reveals a death penalty system collapsing under the weight of
its own mistakes.
June 7, 2000:
Momentum builds for death penalty reform as key Republicans sign
on: Senators Leahy, Smith (R-OR), and Collins (R-ME) introduce the
bipartisan Innocence Protection Act of 2000 (S.2690).
June 13, 2000:
Senate Judiciary Committee holds a hearing titled, Post-Conviction
DNA Testing: When is Justice Served?
June 20, 2000:
House Judiciary Committee, Subcommittee on Crime, holds a hearing on
the Innocence Protection Act.
107th
Congress:
March 7, 2001:
The bipartisan Innocence Protection Act of 2001 is introduced with
15 cosponsors in the Senate and more than 100 in the House.
Eventually the bill garnered the sponsorship of almost a third of
the Senate and 250 members of the House. (S.486/H.R.912)
June 27,
2001: Senate Judiciary Committee holds a hearing titled, Protecting
the Innocent: Ensuring Competent Counsel in Death Penalty Cases."
July 2, 2001:
Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O'Connor expresses concerns about
fairness in the administration of the death penalty:
"If statistics are any indication, the
system may well be allowing some innocent defendants to be
executed. Perhaps it's time to look at minimum standards for
appointed counsel in death cases and adequate compensation for
appointed counsel when they are used."
April 9, 2002:
The number of exonerated death row inmates reaches 100, according to
the Death Penalty Information Center.
June 18, 2002:
Senate and House Judiciary Committees hold hearings on death penalty
reform. The Senate hearing is titled, "Protecting the Innocent:
Proposals to Reform the Death Penalty. The House hearing, titled
The Innocence Protection Act of 2001, is held by the Crime
Subcommittee.
July 18, 2002:
A compromise version of the Innocence Protection Act is reported by
the Senate Judiciary Committee by a vote of 12 to 7. Senators
Specter (R-PA) and Brownback (R-KS) join committee Democrats in
voting for the bill.
108th
Congress:
January 7,
2003: The version of the Innocence Protection Act that was reported
by the Senate Judiciary Committee in the 107th Congress
is introduced as title VI of S.22, the Democratic leadership
anti-crime package.
February 2003:
The American Bar Association issues revised Guidelines
for the Appointment and Performance of Defense Counsel in Death
Penalty Cases. The revised Guidelines make clear that an
independent agency not the courts or elected officials should
appoint counsel in capital cases to ensure the integrity of the
process.
October 1,
2003: The Innocence Protection Act of 2003 is introduced in the
Senate and House as title III of the Advancing Justice Through DNA
Technology Act of 2003. The original cosponsors now include the
Republican Chairmen of the Senate and House Judiciary Committees,
Orrin Hatch (R-UT) and Jim Sensenbrenner (R-WI).
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