City of Philadelphia - File #: 060481

• File #: 060481
• Version: 0
• Type: Resolution
• Status: ADOPTED
• File created: 5/25/2006
• In control: CITY COUNCIL
• Final action: 5/25/2006
• Title: Urging the Pennsylvania General Assembly to pass Senate Bill 1069 called the Innocence Commission Act which will establish the Innocence Commission of Pennsylvania which will study, develop and establish laws and public policy to prevent wrongful convictions of innocent citizens of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.
• Sponsors: Councilmember Tasco, Councilmember Nutter, Councilmember Ramos, Councilmember Goode, Councilmember Miller, Councilmember Blackwell, Council President Verna, Councilmember Kenney, Councilmember Rizzo, Councilmember Clarke, Councilmember DiCicco, Councilmember Reynolds Brown, Councilmember Kelly, Councilmember Krajewski, Councilmember O'Neill

Date	Ver.	Action By	Action	Result	Tally
5/25/2006	0	CITY COUNCIL	ADOPTED
5/25/2006	0	CITY COUNCIL	READ
5/25/2006	0	CITY COUNCIL	Introduced	Pass

Title
Urging the Pennsylvania General Assembly to pass Senate Bill 1069 called the Innocence Commission Act which will establish the Innocence Commission of Pennsylvania which will study, develop and establish laws and public policy to prevent wrongful convictions of innocent citizens of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.
Body
WHEREAS, The Innocence Commission Act seeks to establish the Innocence Commission of Pennsylvania. The Bill was passed unanimously by the Pennsylvania Senate and is currently waiting to be brought up in the Pennsylvania House of Representatives; and

WHEREAS, The purpose of the Innocence Commission of Pennsylvania ("Commission") is to study the underlying causes of wrongful convictions so that it may make recommendations intended to reduce or eliminate the possibility that innocent persons will be wrongly convicted in the future; and

WHEREAS, The Commission will be composed of approximately 30 members recommended by the Governor, the Chief Justice of the Pennsylvania Supreme Court and members of the General Assembly. Using their recommendations, the Joint State Government Commission shall invite members to participate on the commission based on competence, experience and anticipated commitment. Commission shall be diversely representative of the criminal justice system and geographically representative of Pennsylvania. Members must include one member from the following constituencies: prosecution, defense, and law enforcement, corrections, judiciary and victim assistance; and

WHEREAS, The Commission will have subpoena powers and may establish subcommittees to conduct research, to consider and make recommendations on specific topics to report back to the full Commission; and

WHEREAS, The Commission will have the duty to review the cases where a innocent person was wrongly convicted, identify the most common causes of the wrongful conviction, identify the laws, rules and procedures implicated by each type of...