DNA Testing Key to Releasing the Wrongly Imprisoned
Prisoner's Defense
35 states have their own procedural rules for prisoners who would like to access DNA evidence from their case after being convicted. However, many states require new evidence to be brought to court within six months of conviction. This makes it nearly impossible for prisoners convicted before DNA testing was available to bring their suit to court.
In Bennett's case, students tracked down the van involved in his accident at a junkyard, took the samples, and submitted them to a DNA testing lab for analysis. The DNA test placed Bennett in the passenger's seat, not the driver's seat.
Stark County Prosecutor John Ferrero listened to this new evidence, but in many instances, it is difficult to get prosecutors to listen to the Innocence Project's new evidence. "Prosecutors generally oppose us helping, and I don't know why," Godsey said. "The evidence will point one way or the other."
The team found both new eyewitness testimony and an accident-reconstruction expert who disputed the original verdict. Bennett was finally released in 2006, 4 years after he went to jail for a wrongful conviction.
Thankfully, Bennett's case occurred after the 1980s when DNA evidence techniques weren't nearly as strong as they are today. During the 1980s, police put a fluid on the DNA that they thought preserved the DNA, only to find out later that it actually aided in the deterioration of the sample, according to Godsey.
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