Project Grant 15PBJA21GG02630POST

The Committee for Public Counsel Services (CPCS) Innocence Program, Boston Police Forensic Division, and Massachusetts State Police Crime Laboratory received a $1,523,688 Project Grant award from the U.S. Department of Justice's Bureau of Justice Assistance under the Postconviction Testing of DNA Evidence program (CFDA 16.820). The grant will enable the partners to: Expand their existing hair review project to include cases from 1970-1980, and identify all cases from 1970-2000 in which...

This Project Grant award from the U.S. Department of Justice's Bureau of Justice Assistance under the Postconviction Testing of DNA Evidence program (CFDA 16.820) provides $1,523,688 to the New York City Office of the Chief Medical Examiner (NYC OCME) to enhance postconviction DNA testing capabilities. The funding will allow the OCME to increase its review of postconviction cases for DNA testing from 5 to 10 cases per month, in collaboration with local district attorneys' conviction integrity...

The Washington State Patrol Crime Laboratory Division (WSPCLD) will use a $550,000 Project Grant from the Department of Justice Office of Justice Programs Bureau of Justice Assistance to sustain its Postconviction DNA Initiative through September 2025. Under the grant program titled "Postconviction Testing of DNA Evidence" (CFDA 16.820), WSPCLD will continue partnering with the Washington Innocence Project to provide innocent prisoners with timely access to DNA technologies for...

The Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA) awarded a $1,523,688 Project Grant under the Postconviction Testing of DNA Evidence program (CFDA 16.820) to the County of Alameda, California. The funding will be used to establish a Conviction Integrity Unit (CIU) within the Alameda County District Attorney's Office (ACDAO) to prioritize cases where DNA testing could potentially identify wrongful convictions and the true perpetrators. Specifically, the grant will fund a new attorney position and a...

The Department of Justice Office of Justice Programs Bureau of Justice Assistance awarded $550,000 under the Postconviction Testing of DNA Evidence federal grant program (CFDA 16.820) to the Wayne County Prosecutor's Office for a project period of October 1, 2022 through September 30, 2025. The award will support efforts by the Wayne County Prosecutor's Conviction Integrity Unit and the Thomas M. Cooley Law School Innocence Project to expedite the review of approximately 250 DNA-related...

The U.S. Department of Justice, Bureau of Justice Assistance awarded a $1,500,000 Project Grant to the State of Illinois Attorney General's Office to establish a Conviction Integrity Unit (CIU). The CIU will review and investigate violent felony cases where new, credible evidence of innocence has been discovered or where new technologies allow for testing of remaining evidence, with a focus on DNA analysis. Key activities to be supported include screening and reviewing potential...

This $1,523,688 Project Grant award from the U.S. Department of Justice's Bureau of Justice Assistance (CFDA 16.820 - Postconviction Testing of DNA Evidence) will fund the establishment of the Dutchess County District Attorney's inaugural Conviction Integrity Unit (CIU). The primary activities include creating two dedicated positions - a Unit Chief and a part-time Investigator - to conduct thorough case reviews and investigations of violent felony convictions where a credible claim of actual...

The Los Angeles Police Department will utilize a $500,000 Project Grant award from the Department of Justice Office of Justice Programs Bureau of Justice Assistance DNA Backlog Reduction Program to process cold homicide cases from 1990-2018 using advanced forensic DNA technologies. The LAPD South Bureau Homicide Division will select 50-100 cases with suspect DNA to undergo autosomal single nucleotide polymorphism genotyping and other techniques not currently available through existing resources....

The Bureau of Justice Assistance awarded a $855,000 Project Grant under the Postconviction Testing of DNA Evidence program (CFDA 16.820) to the Iowa State Public Defender's Wrongful Conviction Division (WCD). The grant will help the WCD and its partners, the Midwest Innocence Project and Drake Law School's Legal Clinic, expand their capacity to identify and litigate claims of actual innocence through postconviction DNA testing. Specifically, the funding will enable the WCD to hire additional...

This $500,000 Project Grant awarded by the U.S. Department of Justice's Bureau of Justice Assistance (CFDA 16.036 - Comprehensive Forensic DNA Analysis Grant Program) will support the Richmond County District Attorney's Office (RCDA) in Staten Island, New York. The funding will enable RCDA to establish a cold case unit and increase resources devoted to investigating and prosecuting violent crime cold cases where suspect DNA profiles have already been developed. Key activities include...