Less than a week after a controversial candidate was elected Cook County State’s Attorney, Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul on Tuesday, November 12, announced the establishment of the first-ever Conviction Integrity Unit (CIU) within the Attorney General’s office.
The CIU will investigate claims of actual innocence to determine whether new, credible evidence substantially proves the innocence of individuals serving time for crimes they did not commit.
“Over the past five years, we have worked with state’s attorneys, appellate justices, the Department of Justice and others to establish a unit within my office that would solely focus on reviewing wrongful convictions, seeking relief when warranted and preventing the devastation caused when someone is wrongfully convicted,” Raoul said.
“Wrongful convictions destroy lives, diminish faith in our criminal justice system, and put victims and the general public at risk, as true perpetrators of crimes are able to escape punishment.
“As a career prosecutor and the state’s top law enforcement official, I look forward to the critical work this unit will do in collaboration with state’s attorneys and stakeholders across the state to ensure integrity in convictions.”
The CIU’s mission is to independently review past convictions to ensure justice, and to right the wrongs of any wrongful convictions in Illinois. The CIU will work in partnership with local state’s attorneys, law enforcement and other criminal justice stakeholders to provide the necessary resources to revisit and review past convictions.
Applicants must meet specific eligibility requirements; however, Raoul’s newly-created CIU will generally allow anyone incarcerated in an Illinois prison who was convicted by an Illinois state court as an adult, of a forcible felony, to petition for post-conviction review. The unit will conduct collaborative and good-faith case reviews to ensure the integrity of challenged convictions and remedy wrongful convictions.
The announcement came one week after Democrat Eileen O’Neill Burke was elected Cook County State’s Attorney. She will succeed Kim Foxx, who did not seek reelection after serving two terms.
Burke was elected despite during her tenure as an assistant state’s attorney, she in the 1990s prosecuted an 11-year-old boy. He was convicted of murdering an elderly white woman in the Marquette Park neighborhood.
The conviction was later thrown out by a federal judge because police used illegal tactics and the confession was coerced. O’Neill Burke was aware the juvenile was interrogated for multiple hours with no adult representing him present for the questioning.
Burke ran as an anti-crime candidate and pledged to reverse some progressive policies Foxx made when she was in office.
As Burke prepares to crack down on crime, there are concerns that wrongful conviction cases will suffer. Illinois’ newly created Conviction Integrity Unit may provide wrongfully convicted individuals an alternative outlet to have their cases heard and addressed.
In order for the CIU to review a case, an applicant must meet certain criteria, including:
• Having been convicted by an Illinois state court and currently incarcerated for the conviction for which he or she asserts a claim of actual innocence. “Actual innocence” means the applicant claims to have had no criminal responsibility in the offense for which they were convicted and can provide new, credible evidence to substantiate their claim.
• Having been convicted of a forcible felony, which must involve the use or threat of physical force or violence against an individual that results in great bodily harm, such as murder, criminal sexual assault or aggravated battery.
• There must be newly-discovered and credible evidence that supports the claim of actual innocence.
• The case cannot currently be on appeal or with the state’s attorney for post-conviction reviews. Otherwise, the CIU will not review the case.
Once the CIU receives an application, it will be screened to determine whether it meets the eligibility criteria. If the CIU accepts a case for a more thorough evaluation, a full investigation is conducted to establish whether a wrongful conviction has occurred. A recommendation is made about whether relief is necessary and what remedies to pursue.
If there is a substantial probability of actual innocence – meaning the totality of evidence is either irrefutable or satisfactorily compelling – the CIU will work with the local state’s attorney to determine whether it is in the interest of justice to seek relief from a conviction.
The CIU will also study and collect data on the causes of wrongful convictions in Illinois in an effort to improve state policies and procedures to prevent future wrongful convictions and strengthen confidence in the criminal justice system.
Applications are already available in English and Spanish in the law libraries of Illinois Department of Corrections facilities and can be obtained by criminal defense attorneys. More information about the CIU – including eligibility requirements – can be found at www.IllinoisAttorneyGeneral.gov.
Information used to prepare this story was provided by the Illinois Attorney General’s office.