Downstate Illinois Innocence Project®
Mission Statement
The Downstate Illinois Innocence Project has a two part mission -- to provide assistance to attorneys representing downstate Illinois inmates convicted of crimes they did not commit and to prevent conviction of innocent persons in the future.
The Project goals are: 1) exoneration of innocent persons convicted of felony crimes in downstate Illinois, and 2) reform of the criminal justice system in Illinois and the nation through the education of students, citizens, and policy-makers about problems, causes, and possible reforms of a criminal justice system that results in conviction of the innocent.
As to the first goal, the Downstate Illinois Innocence Project conducts research and investigative activities for attorneys representing convicted inmates in cases where there is a strong likelihood that the inmates, even though convicted, are actually innocent. The Project concentrates its efforts primarily on non-capital cases and on inmates, who without the assistance of the Project, are likely to remain wrongfully incarcerated for life or a substantial number of years. It provides assistance only in post-conviction cases where there is a strong likelihood that an inmate is actually innocent. With a university affiliation, the Project involves students, who are enrolled in classes or internships as a part of their undergraduate or graduate course of study at the University of Illinois at Springfield, in the investigation of actual innocence cases.
As to the second goal, the Project conducts a variety of educational forums to educate citizens at large about the nature and severity of the problem of the conviction of the innocent. It works closely with the press to raise awareness of innocence cases as they are identified, and publicizes exonerations when they occur. As to individual students involved with the Project, it provides them with a variety of service learning opportunities in fulfillment of their degree requirements that help them question their preconceived notions about the criminal justice system and challenges them to become informed and engaged citizens by eliciting their help in the identification and solution of significant criminal justice public policy reforms.