The Innocence Project of Florida Tallahassee, FL

1. The Innocence Project of FloridaTallahassee, FL McGill Lawrence Internship Alex Houston Psychology ‘13

2. IPF’s Mission: Through the use of DNA testing, IPF helps innocent prisoners in Florida obtain their freedom and rebuild their lives. James Bain (exonerated after 35 years in prison) pictured with the two Innocence Project Staff Attorneys upon his release.

3. As an Intern • I reviewed the case files for potential clients. The files include trial transcripts, evidence lists, police records and letters from the inmate. • Because many cases do not meet IPF’s DNA requirements, the Innocence Project only accepts a small number of cases. Of the 10 cases I reviewed over the course of the summer, only one case made it through IPF’s guidelines and the organization will attempt to help this client obtain a new trial. • I was also given the opportunity to visit one of our clients in a maximum security prison – an experience I will never forget. • I met several exonorees who receive support from IPF upon their release – including securing a job, a place to live and adjusting to life outside of prison.

4. What I Learned about Myself and What Skills I Improved • The internship reinforced my values of fairness and equality. Part of IPF’s mission is to give everyone a chance to present their case. So instead of writing the individual off as hopeless, every case is carefully reviewed from start to finish because there is always the chance that something in the case merits further review. • This also emphasized the importance of patience – spending a week reading through a case without much chance that the case to be taken on due to lack of biological evidence was difficult and sometimes frustrating, but necessary to keep in line with IPF’s values.

5. Though I am accustomed to reading a lot at Reed, I have never read as much as I did this summer. For every case that I worked on I was presented with a massive case file - usually filled with jumbled documents that were sent in by the individual’s family members. • I learned how to take a huge amount of testimonies, transcripts and facts, many that were contradictory and seemingly unrelated, and organize them into a coherent narrative without much guidance. I think this skill will be of use to me in both my academic studies and any career I pursue. • I also learned many legal terms, how the legal system works in Florida and how to read DNA testing results (which involved more math than I’ve done since high school).

6. What I Learned about the Innocence Project and Working for an NPO. • One aspect of the project I had not fully realized before beginning the internship was how stringent the guidelines were for IPF to take on a case. • The DNA evidence requirement rules out most cases and I reviewed more than one case this summer in which strong claims of innocence were presented; however, there was not any biological evidence to support a new trial. • One way IPF is attempting to change this set up is by creating a new office through the University of Miami that would focus on non-biological cases, which tend to be much more difficult to represent. • Fundraising was much more of a focus than I had anticipated. Because DNA tests are incredibly expensive (many tests cost thousands of dollars), IPF is forced to spend much of its time asking for donations and putting together fundraising events.  

7. The Community • My hometown in Central Florida tends to be one that is relatively diverse and has an urban population, which gave me a very skewed perspective of Florida as a whole. After spending the summer in North Florida and reviewing many cases from rural areas in the Panhandle, my impression of the community changed. • I was shocked to read cases in which blatantly racist remarks were made from communities where the KKK is still active and little interaction between races exists. I am much more aware of the impact of racism, especially in terms of the criminal justice system. • In many cases, I was taken aback at how little time and money went into police investigations of serious cases in impoverished communities. This was further exacerbated by the media’s exclusive focus on the Casey Anthony murder trial this summer, in which millions of dollars were spent on the investigation and court proceedings.

8. Academic Applications • The most important reforms that need to take place in Florida’s criminal justice system are: • Eyewitness Identification Reform – Faulty eyewitness evidence is the number one element in wrongful convictions. IPF works to reform laws regarding police procedures in lineups and confidence statements. • Exonoree Compensation – Florida law prohibits exonorees who have committed any other felony from receiving any compensation for their time spent in jail. IPF provides aftercare support for all exonorees as well as working to reform legislation. • As a Psychology major, I am hoping to look into these problems with the criminal justice system and incorporate them into my thesis next year, possibly focusing on eyewitness memory recall. • Without this experience, I would never have had the opportunity to visit a high security prison, talk to individuals who were wrongly imprisoned for decades or work with lawyers who are minimally compensated in their pursuit of social justice. • I am much more aware of the problems in our criminal judicial system and the areas that need reform. I look forward to continue my involvement with the Innocence Project and its mission in the coming years and to keep in touch with all of the inspiring individuals I worked with this summer.

9. What advice would you have for others embarking on a McGill, Davis or similar experience? • Plan ahead! Call around, get advice and do something you are truly interested in pursuing. • What do you wish you had known before you started your first day? • Don’t be afraid to ask questions. After spending about two hours on my first day of work trying to figure out how to access online databases for the Court of Appeals, I finally gave up and asked. I learned how to access it in about 5 minutes. Because I was working in a volunteer setting, there was no harm in being confused - they would much rather that I ask for guidance and do things correctly than to guess.

10. Reviewing Case Files Fellow Interns

11. If you are interested in getting involved with the Innocence Project, almost every state has one! And you can buy the album by recent exonoree, William M. Dillon. After 28 years of wrongful imprisonment, he went on to become a musician and release an album about his experiences.