Richard C. Glazer
atTempleUniversityExecutive Director
BeasleySchool of Law
1515 Market Street, Suite 300Marissa BoyersBluestine
Philadelphia, PA 19102Legal Director
215-204-4255
TO: John Dalessandro, University of Pittsburgh- School of Social Work
FR: Marissa Bluestine, Pennsylvania Innocence Project- Legal Director
RE: Available Field Placement Position
DATE: May 15, 2017
The Pennsylvania Innocence Project is a Pennsylvania based non-profit corporation that works to exonerate those convicted of crimes they did not commit. The Project has a four-fold mission to:(1)secure the exoneration, release from imprisonment, and restoration to society of persons who are innocent and have been wrongly convicted;(2)provide clinical training and experience to students in the fields of law, journalism, social work, criminal justice, and forensic science;(3)collaborate with law enforcement agencies and the courts to address systemic causes of wrongful convictions; and(4)strengthen and improve the effectiveness of the criminal justice system in Pennsylvania through public education and advocacy.
The Project opened its doors in 2009. In the last eight years, we have received upwards of 5,000 letters from incarcerated individuals seeking our help. Despite being a small organization, the Project has cases in active litigation spanning the entire state of Pennsylvania and dozens more being investigated. We have participated in the exoneration of seven innocent individuals and in securing relief and release for three other individuals; the Project hassecured new trials for an additional three individuals, whose cases are ongoing. The Project currently represents 24 clients in court and is investigating dozens more cases. Some of our clients are “juvenile lifers” who will be pursuing re-sentencing relief in addition to their innocence claims. Others may pursue relief before the Pennsylvania Board of Probation and Parole and/or the Pennsylvania Board of Pardons.
Although post-conviction litigation is usually a very lengthy process, oftentimes, we have little to no notice prior to the release of one of our clients. Many of our exonerees have spent decades in prison for crimes that they did not commit. Thus, it is essential that we are able to efficiently link our exonerees with re-entry support services. We also need to identify support services for clients who may soon be released from prison.
To that end, social work interns will assist the Project by identifying community resource organizations that provide essential re-entry services and that are willing to work with Project clients. Social work interns will work to create a county-by-county database of support organizations that may be accessed in emergency situations as well as those organizations thatprovide long-term support services. Additionally, social work interns will be asked to create individual support plans for recent exonerees, as well as for clients who are going before the parole board or who we expect to be released soon, addressing the specific challenges faced by each individual.
Social work interns may assist the Project’s legal and investigative staff in locating and interviewing witnesses, clients, and their families; collecting, reviewing and organizing extensive records; researching issues, neighborhoods and community resources; writing mitigation reports and re-entry plans for the legal team in preparation for re-sentencing, parole, and/or pardon proceedings; preparing for and observing court proceedings; and creating genograms, timelines, mitigation videos and other mitigation aids. Interns must be willing and able to meet with clients in the office, in the community and in prisons or jails.
Social work interns will be based at the Project’s Pittsburgh office but will have the opportunity to work with Project attorneys and staff in both the Pittsburgh and Philadelphia offices and to work on cases throughout the Commonwealth. Interns will participate in training on issues related to wrongful conviction and will have the opportunity to join Project staff and law student interns at continuing education sessions. If social work interns are able to secure funding, they are welcome to participate in the annual Innocence Network conference, which includes several sessions on re-entry needs of exonerees and their families.
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