Senate Bill 1338 provides that all claims of wrongful conviction and imprisonment shall be heard by the Commonwealth Court. The district attorney or attorney general may offer evidence and argue in opposition to a claim for damages, but S.B. 1338 specifically suggests a level of informality with regard to the proceedings. The court may order damages of a minimum of $50,000 for each year of incarceration, as adjusted annually to account for inflation and prorated for partial years served.
The new law would provide that a claimant before the Commonwealth Court would have to prove, by clear and convincing evidence, actual innocence. A claimant can establish actual innocence in one of three ways: (1) being pardoned by the governor because the crime was not committed or if a crime was committed the claimant was not responsible; (2) the conviction was reversed or vacated on grounds consistent with innocence; or (3) a new trial was ordered, and the claimant was found not guilty or was not retried.
This content has been archived. It is available through our partners, LexisNexis® and Bloomberg Law.
To view this content, please continue to their sites.
Not a Lexis Subscriber?
Subscribe Now
Not a Bloomberg Law Subscriber?
Subscribe Now
LexisNexis® and Bloomberg Law are third party online distributors of the broad collection of current and archived versions of ALM's legal news publications. LexisNexis® and Bloomberg Law customers are able to access and use ALM's content, including content from the National Law Journal, The American Lawyer, Legaltech News, The New York Law Journal, and Corporate Counsel, as well as other sources of legal information.
For questions call 1-877-256-2472 or contact us at [email protected]
