{"id":2468,"date":"2022-11-28T00:00:19","date_gmt":"2022-11-28T00:00:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/azexpunge.org\/2022\/09\/29\/partner-profile-mia-burcham-2\/"},"modified":"2022-11-28T23:01:02","modified_gmt":"2022-11-28T23:01:02","slug":"organization-profile-asu-post-conviction-clinic","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/azexpunge.org\/nv\/2022\/11\/28\/organization-profile-asu-post-conviction-clinic\/","title":{"rendered":"Organization Profile &#8211; ASU Post-Conviction Clinic"},"content":{"rendered":"<!--themify_builder_content-->\n<div id=\"themify_builder_content-2468\" data-postid=\"2468\" class=\"themify_builder_content themify_builder_content-2468 themify_builder tf_clear\">\n    \t<!-- module_row -->\n\t<div  data-lazy=\"1\" class=\"module_row themify_builder_row tb_5pbe995 tb_first tf_clearfix\">\n\t    \t\t<div class=\"row_inner col_align_top tf_box tf_w tf_rel\">\n\t\t\t<div  data-lazy=\"1\" class=\"module_column tb-column col-full first tb_wtca996 tf_box\">\n\t    \t    \t        <div class=\"tb-column-inner tf_box tf_w\">\n\t\t    <!-- module fancy heading -->\n<div  class=\"module module-fancy-heading tb_p1m0981  tb_hide_divider wow\" data-tf-animation=\"slideInLeft\" data-lazy=\"1\">\n        <h1 class=\"fancy-heading tf_textc\">\n    <span  class=\"main-head tf_block\">\n\tOrganization Profile    <\/span>\n    <span class=\"sub-head tf_block tf_rel\">\n\t    <\/span>\n\n    <\/h1>\n<\/div>\n<!-- \/module fancy heading -->\n\t        <\/div>\n\t    \t<\/div>\n\t\t    <\/div>\n\t    <!-- \/row_inner -->\n\t<\/div>\n\t<!-- \/module_row -->\n\t\t<!-- module_row -->\n\t<div  data-lazy=\"1\" class=\"module_row themify_builder_row tb_xss9579 tf_clearfix\">\n\t    \t\t<div class=\"row_inner col_align_top tf_box tf_w tf_rel\">\n\t\t\t<div  data-lazy=\"1\" class=\"module_column tb-column col-full first tb_la9d580 tf_box\">\n\t    \t    \t        <div class=\"tb-column-inner tf_box tf_w\">\n\t\t    <!-- module feature -->\n<div  class=\"module module-feature tb_sgkl902 with-chart layout-icon-top size-custom\" data-lazy=\"1\">\n        <div class=\"module-feature-image tf_textc tf_rel\">\n\t\t\t    <span class=\"module-feature-chart-html5 tf_box tf_rel tf_inline_b\" style=\"width:250px;height:250px;\">\n\t\t\t\t    <svg class=\"tf_abs tf_w tf_h\">\n\t\t\t<circle class=\"tb_feature_fill\" r=\"calc(50% - 1.5px)\" cx=\"50%\" cy=\"50%\" stroke-width=\"3\"\/>\n\t\t\t<circle class=\"tb_feature_stroke\" r=\"calc(50% - 1.5px)\" cx=\"50%\" cy=\"50%\" stroke=\"#ee2312\" stroke-width=\"3\" data-progress=\"100\" stroke-dasharray=\"0,10000\"\/>\n\t\t\t\t\t    <\/svg>\n\t\t\t\t<span class=\"chart-html5-circle tf_w tf_h\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<img decoding=\"async\" style=\"width:calc(100% - 6px);height:calc(100% - 6px)\" src=\"https:\/\/azexpunge.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/asu-oconnorbldg.jpg\" alt=\"Reclaim Your Future - ASU Post-conviction Clinic - AZ Expungement Coalition\">\n\t\t\t \t\t   <\/span>\n\t    <\/span>\n\t        <\/div>\n    <div class=\"module-feature-content tf_textc\">\n\t    \t<h3 class=\"module-feature-title\">\n\t\t\t\t    ASU Post-Conviction Clinic\t\t    \t<\/h3>\n\t    \t<div class=\"tb_text_wrap\">\n\t    \t<\/div>\n    <\/div>\n<\/div>\n<!-- \/module feature -->\n<!-- module divider -->\n<div  class=\"module tf_mw module-divider tb_98o8112 solid  divider-custom divider-center\" style=\"border-width: 1px;border-color: #000;margin-top: 10px;margin-bottom: 50px;width: 250px;\" data-lazy=\"1\">\n        <\/div>\n<!-- \/module divider -->\n\t        <\/div>\n\t    \t<\/div>\n\t\t    <\/div>\n\t    <!-- \/row_inner -->\n\t<\/div>\n\t<!-- \/module_row -->\n\t\t<!-- module_row -->\n\t<div  data-lazy=\"1\" class=\"module_row themify_builder_row tb_b1c4786 tf_clearfix\">\n\t    \t\t<div class=\"row_inner col_align_top tf_box tf_w tf_rel\">\n\t\t\t<div  data-lazy=\"1\" class=\"module_column tb-column col-full first tb_qfge787 tf_box\">\n\t    \t    \t        <div class=\"tb-column-inner tf_box tf_w\">\n\t\t    <!-- module text -->\n<div  class=\"module module-text tb_586f613\" data-lazy=\"1\">\n            <div  class=\"tb_text_wrap\">\n    <p><strong>Reclaim Your Future <\/strong>(RYF) is a statewide campaign funded by a grant from the Arizona Department of Health Services to help people expunge, or seal, their marijuana-related public criminal records. The campaign is run by organizations in central, southern and northern Arizona that make up the Arizona Marijuana Expungement Coalition.<\/p>\n<p>As part of our efforts to better inform the public about Prop 207 and expungement, we are profiling the members of our Coalition and helping them explain the work they do. This week, meet the <a href=\"https:\/\/law.asu.edu\/experiences\/clinics\/post-conviction\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><strong>Arizona State University Post-Conviction Clinic<\/strong><\/a> and its supervising attorney, <a href=\"https:\/\/search.asu.edu\/profile\/1243293\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><strong>Randy McDonald<\/strong><\/a>.<\/p>    <\/div>\n<\/div>\n<!-- \/module text --><!-- module text -->\n<div  class=\"module module-text tb_kja5192\" data-lazy=\"1\">\n            <div  class=\"tb_text_wrap\">\n    <p><div class=\"post-video\"><iframe loading=\"lazy\" data-tf-not-load=\"1\" title=\"Reclaim Your Future: What is post-conviction relief?\" width=\"1165\" height=\"655\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/2t9cBN8Aw8M?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/div><\/p>\n<p><strong>RYF: <\/strong>Randy, explain to folks what exactly post-conviction relief is and why the clinic is so important in the community that you serve.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Randy McDonald: <\/strong>Post-conviction relief is, as the term implies, anything legal that a criminal defendant can do to attack his or her conviction after it is final. So, we do a number of different things. We represent criminal defendants in parole hearings. We do post-conviction appeals. We help people file applications for commutation. And now with the help of the Arizona Justice Project (AJP) and the grant we received from the state of Arizona, we are helping people go back and expunge marijuana convictions that became final many years ago.<\/p>\n<p><strong>RYF:<\/strong> Can you give us a real-world example of post-conviction relief?<\/p>\n<p><strong>RM: <\/strong>Sure. I think the type of case that people might be most familiar with is a DNA-type case. After DNA technology became more prevalent, a lot of prisoners and criminal defendants began going back and testing biological samples that were collected, but were unable to be tested, and discovered that, in fact, the DNA profiles that were found in these cases didn&#8217;t match them. And so, they would file a post-conviction relief petition with the court to say, &#8220;I found this new evidence. This DNA test shows that I am not the person who committed this crime, so my conviction should be overturned.&#8221; And so, I think that the most prevalent types of post-conviction cases that we&#8217;re most familiar with are DNA cases where DNA results have exonerated someone.<\/p>\n<p>But it doesn&#8217;t have to be DNA testing. It could be any kind of new evidence. It could be a change in the law. It could be evidence of a constitutional violation, for instance, if we discovered that the prosecutor had withheld evidence from the defense that could have helped the defense. Post-conviction is a bunch of things. It is sort of the umbrella term that we use to describe any kind of legal relief that you&#8217;re seeking after the conviction becomes final.<\/p>\n<p><strong>RYF: <\/strong>How is that different from an appeal?<\/p>\n<p><strong>RM: <\/strong>An appeal is something that happens right after the conviction, and it happens as a right. In most American jurisdictions, you have an automatic right to an appeal before your conviction becomes final. And in an appeal, you can challenge legal issues that had to do with the trial. So, for instance, you can say, &#8220;This evidence shouldn&#8217;t have been admitted against me at trial.&#8221; Or you can say, &#8220;This particular jury instruction was wrong, and it didn&#8217;t correctly describe the offense.&#8221; So, when you&#8217;re looking at an appeal, you&#8217;re basically reading the transcript of a trial and you&#8217;re looking for errors that happened at trial. Whereas a post-conviction petition involves any type of new evidence you can bring in any kind of claim that wasn&#8217;t necessarily part of the original trial. That&#8217;s why newly-discovered evidence is kind of the archetype of a post-conviction petition.<\/p>\n<p><strong>RYF:<\/strong> Can anyone access the legal aid that the Clinic provides? Anybody in the community?<\/p>\n<p><strong>RM: <\/strong>The vast majority of our clients are individuals who are incarcerated in Arizona&#8217;s prison system. We do have very few folks that we have helped who have either [already] served their sentence or are in the federal prison system. But anyone who has a criminal conviction could access the help of the Post-Conviction Clinic. We typically partner with the Arizona Justice Project, who does a lot of the intake of our cases. So, people write to AJP, and AJP will refer to us cases that seem like they would benefit from some of our investigation.<\/p>\n<p><strong>RYF:<\/strong> Would you explain to folks why it&#8217;s called a \u201cclinic\u201d?<\/p>\n<p><strong>RM: <\/strong>We operate within the <a href=\"https:\/\/law.asu.edu\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Arizona State University College of Law<\/a>. I&#8217;m an attorney, and there is one other attorney who works with the Clinic. But other than that, everyone who does work for the Clinic is a law student. And so, the clinical education program here at ASU has a number of components. There&#8217;s a Civil Litigation Clinic, there&#8217;s an Immigration Clinic, and there is the Post-Conviction Clinic. And so, it is a clinic in the sense that we are providing clinical education or hands-on education to students, and those students are providing legal services for people in the community.<\/p>    <\/div>\n<\/div>\n<!-- \/module text --><!-- module box -->\n<div  class=\"module module-box tb_opir584\" data-lazy=\"1\">\n            <div class=\"module-box-content ui rounded gradient shadow tb_default_color repeat\">\n\t<div class=\"tb_text_wrap\"><p>\u201cAnd now, we represent folks who have marijuana convictions who, by expunging those convictions, are able to go back and seek re-sentencing to get out of prison earlier.&#8221;<\/p><\/div>\n    <\/div>\n<\/div>\n<!-- \/module box -->\t<div  data-lazy=\"1\" class=\"module_subrow themify_builder_sub_row tb_3xod789 tf_w tf_clearfix\">\n\t    \t\t<div class=\"subrow_inner col_align_top tf_box tf_w\">\n\t\t\t<div  data-lazy=\"1\" class=\"sub_column module_column tf_box col-full first tb_7rzn790\"> \n\t    \t    \t        <div class=\"tb-column-inner tf_box tf_w\">\n\t\t    <!-- module text -->\n<div  class=\"module module-text tb_800n728\" data-lazy=\"1\">\n            <div  class=\"tb_text_wrap\">\n    <p><strong>RYF:<\/strong> Got it. How long has the ASU Post-Conviction Clinic been around?<\/p>\n<p><strong>RM<\/strong>: So, AJP, which founded the Post-Conviction Clinic, was founded several years ago. And it was one of the very first state-level innocence projects. So, I think a lot of people are familiar with the Innocence Project, which is the nationwide project that seeks to overturn wrongful convictions. The <a href=\"https:\/\/azjusticeproject.org\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Arizona Justice Project<\/a> is a project like that, but it operates exclusively in Arizona. And it doesn&#8217;t only take on cases of innocence, but cases of what we call \u201cmanifest injustice.\u201d So, lengthy sentences, juvenile offenders, [and] cases where perhaps innocence and guilt aren\u2019t being contested, but AJP thinks that there&#8217;s some sort of injustice that has occurred, and they want to represent the defendant.<\/p>\n<p>The Clinic came about because, around 2008, the United States Congress created a grant called a Bloodsworth grant, named after <a href=\"https:\/\/innocenceproject.org\/cases\/kirk-bloodsworth\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Kirk Bloodsworth<\/a>, who is the very first person on death row who was exonerated using DNA technology. This grant funded programs that would investigate post-conviction claims of innocence using DNA technology. And AJP was awarded one of these very first grants and, using that grant, founded the Post-Conviction Clinic at ASU. There are many clinics like ours at law schools across the country, but like the Innocence Project, many of these clinics are geared toward proving claims of innocence. In other words, they only take cases where the clients claim that they are innocent of the crime charged. The Post-Conviction Clinic is a little bit different in that we do take innocence cases. We do try and overturn wrongful convictions. But we also take many cases in which we think there&#8217;s been a manifest injustice.<\/p>\n<p>We&#8217;ve represented folks who have terminal illnesses trying to get commutation or clemency. We represent folks who were juveniles when they committed their offenses and are in prison for the rest of their lives. We represent them in parole hearings and in post-conviction proceedings. And now, we represent folks who have marijuana convictions who, by expunging those convictions, are able to go back and seek re-sentencings to get out of prison earlier than they otherwise would have.<\/p>\n<p><strong>RYF:<\/strong> Sounds like a lot of work. Tell us about who works with you at the clinic.<\/p>\n<p><strong>RM: <\/strong>I&#8217;m the supervising attorney. I work here full-time, and I supervise the rest of the staff and the students who work at the clinic. There&#8217;s another attorney who works with us part-time, <a href=\"https:\/\/search.asu.edu\/profile\/1744371\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Joey Dormady<\/a>, who is in the administration here at ASU and also helps me to supervise some of the cases. We have a legal fellow who is funded by the Prop 207 grant that we received, Andi Humphreys. And she is a recent law school graduate and soon to be an attorney. In fact, she should [pass the bar exam] within a few days here, we hope. And she is helping us by basically overseeing all of the marijuana expungement-related litigation that our students are working on.<\/p>\n<p>And then there are the students themselves. In any given semester, we have 10 to 15 students who are working with us on various cases. Each student will be assigned their own caseload. They&#8217;ll be responsible for investigating the cases for drafting any documents related to the cases for speaking to the clients, for developing any legal strategy.<\/p>    <\/div>\n<\/div>\n<!-- \/module text --><!-- module image -->\n<div  class=\"module module-image tb_lb8r506   image-top tf_mw\" data-lazy=\"1\">\n            <div class=\"image-wrap tf_rel tf_mw\">\n\t\t    <img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"800\" height=\"453\" src=\"https:\/\/azexpunge.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/pcc-keithharrisonfamily_800x453.jpg\" class=\"wp-post-image wp-image-2480\" title=\"pcc-keithharrisonfamily_800x453\" alt=\"In November 2022, attorneys with the Reclaim Your Future campaign successfully fought for the release of Keith Harrison, a 58-year-old Phoenix resident who was sentenced to LIFE in prison in 1993 while he was on probation for marijuana possession.\" srcset=\"https:\/\/azexpunge.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/pcc-keithharrisonfamily_800x453.jpg 800w, https:\/\/azexpunge.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/pcc-keithharrisonfamily_800x453-300x170.jpg 300w, https:\/\/azexpunge.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/pcc-keithharrisonfamily_800x453-768x435.jpg 768w, https:\/\/azexpunge.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/pcc-keithharrisonfamily_800x453-18x10.jpg 18w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\" \/>\t\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t<!-- \/image-wrap -->\n    \n    \t<div class=\"image-content\">\n\t    \n\t    \t\t<div class=\"image-caption tb_text_wrap\">\n\t\t    In November 2022, attorneys with the Reclaim Your Future campaign successfully fought for the release of Keith Harrison, a 58-year-old Phoenix resident who was sentenced to LIFE in prison in 1993 while he was on probation for marijuana possession.\t    <\/div>\n\t    <!-- \/image-caption -->\n\t    \t<\/div>\n\t<!-- \/image-content -->\n    \n<\/div>\n<!-- \/module image --><!-- module text -->\n<div  class=\"module module-text tb_d9e2456\" data-lazy=\"1\">\n            <div  class=\"tb_text_wrap\">\n    <p><strong>RYF: <\/strong>Besides the work that you&#8217;ve done with the Coalition, what are some of the clinic&#8217;s big victories for the people who have sought your assistance?<\/p>\n<p><strong>RM: <\/strong>I think the biggest impact that we&#8217;ve had is for people who are seeking either clemency or parole. We&#8217;ve represented a number of people who committed offenses when they were juveniles. We&#8217;ve represented them at parole hearings, and a number of them have been paroled and are now out in the community and really thriving. We know that by and large, people who commit criminal offenses as juveniles are much less likely to re-offend than people who commit offenses later in life. And so, we have helped a number of those folks get parole and sort of reintegrate back into the community. And what that means is representing them at the parole hearing, helping them by putting together release plans, and helping them do the things that they need when they get back out into the community.<\/p>\n<p><strong>RYF:<\/strong> There are seven organizations around the state, including the Post-Conviction Clinic, that are part of the Arizona Marijuana Expungement Coalition. Tell us about the Post-Conviction Clinic&#8217;s contributions to the Coalition.<\/p>\n<p><strong>RM: <\/strong>We have focused on representing individuals who are incarcerated in Arizona prisons who have sentences that are enhanced by prior marijuana convictions. In Arizona, when you commit a criminal offense, if you have historical prior criminal offenses, the state can lengthen your sentence because you&#8217;re a [so-called] &#8220;repetitive offender.&#8221; What we have been doing is we&#8217;ve been finding folks who have longer sentences because of previous marijuana convictions. We&#8217;ve been expunging those convictions, and we&#8217;ve been getting back into court and asking courts to re-sentence these folks so that their sentences can be shorter. And we&#8217;ve had a lot of success with that. We have helped a number of people so far either shorten their sentences or walk free, almost immediately.<\/p>\n<p>Another issue that we&#8217;ve come up against is the question of whether a person who is convicted of possession for sale [of marijuana] is convicted of possession of marijuana, which is expungable, or is convicted of selling marijuana, which is not expungable. Although the statute approved by Arizona voters may seem pretty clear, there are a lot of gray areas that are not really explained in the law that we need to litigate and ask the courts to decide. Other organizations in the Coalition have been referring us cases that get a little bit more complicated and require a little bit more working up and litigating in the state trial and appellate courts.<\/p>    <\/div>\n<\/div>\n<!-- \/module text --><!-- module box -->\n<div  class=\"module module-box tb_xy1d149\" data-lazy=\"1\">\n            <div class=\"module-box-content ui rounded gradient shadow tb_default_color repeat\">\n\t<div class=\"tb_text_wrap\"><p>\u201cIt&#8217;s an emotional thing to have happen. It&#8217;s exciting work to be able to get these folks back to their families and back out in the community where they need to be.&#8221;<\/p><\/div>\n    <\/div>\n<\/div>\n<!-- \/module box --><!-- module text -->\n<div  class=\"module module-text tb_0uo7729\" data-lazy=\"1\">\n            <div  class=\"tb_text_wrap\">\n    <p><strong>RYF:<\/strong> Presumably, those particular cases where you&#8217;re able to get somebody home, those are especially rewarding.<\/p>\n<p><strong>RM: <\/strong>Yes, I agree with that. I can think of one [client] in particular. Because of Covid restrictions, we had not been able to meet with this client until he literally walked into the courtroom where he was going to be resentenced. And so, my first opportunity to actually meet him was when we were sitting in the courtroom and he was being resentenced, and the judge was basically resentencing him to time served. So, he was going to leave the courtroom, go back to the jail, and be processed out almost immediately. It&#8217;s an emotional thing to have happen. It&#8217;s exciting work to be able to get these folks back to their families and back out in the community where they need to be.<\/p>\n<p><div class=\"post-video\"><iframe loading=\"lazy\" data-tf-not-load=\"1\" title=\"Reclaim Your Future: What&#039;s in store for the Post-Conviction Clinic?\" width=\"1165\" height=\"655\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/aj0sqtVPJBk?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/div><\/p>\n<p><strong>RYF: <\/strong>How do you think the Clinic might evolve going forward with laws changing in Arizona such as the legalization of adult recreational use of marijuana and the expansion of expungement opportunities?<\/p>\n<p><strong>RM: <\/strong>One thing that we have been able to do much more recently is working with prosecution offices in the state of Arizona to sort of reach a common goal that we both agree should happen. So, for instance, with these marijuana resentencings, the state agrees with us that these folks should be resentenced. They just need representation to walk through that process. And we&#8217;re finding that there is much more of an appetite for criminal justice reform now, such that county attorney&#8217;s offices that historically have been very tough on crime\u2014and when I say tough on crime, I mean they want lengthy prison sentences for offenses that are not always violent, do not always necessarily require these lengthy sentences\u2014the county attorneys are now willing to work with us to get folks with longer sentences either resentenced or get them out on parole or get them out on some sort of supervised release. Because they realize that justice does not always mean throwing someone in jail and throwing away the key.<\/p>\n<p>So, I will say I&#8217;m hopeful that we&#8217;re able to work with prosecution offices more frequently in the future towards a common [goal]. We&#8217;re not always going to agree with the prosecutors. We&#8217;re going to litigate some cases. We&#8217;re going to fight with them on occasion. But I think both the prosecution office and the Clinic want to serve the ends of justice. And when we can agree on what justice is, that&#8217;s a happy time for everyone. So, I&#8217;m hopeful that, as the Clinic evolves, we will be able to do more of that type of work.<\/p>\n<p><em>To learn more about what students do at the Post-Conviction Clinic at ASU, go to: <a href=\"https:\/\/law.asu.edu\/experiences\/clinics\/post-conviction\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">https:\/\/law.asu.edu\/experiences\/clinics\/post-conviction<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>    <\/div>\n<\/div>\n<!-- \/module text -->\t        <\/div>\n\t    \t<\/div>\n\t\t    <\/div>\n\t<\/div><!-- \/themify_builder_sub_row -->\n\t\t        <\/div>\n\t    \t<\/div>\n\t\t    <\/div>\n\t    <!-- \/row_inner -->\n\t<\/div>\n\t<!-- \/module_row -->\n\t\t<!-- module_row -->\n\t<div  data-lazy=\"1\" class=\"module_row themify_builder_row tb_1ug878 tf_clearfix\">\n\t    \t\t<div class=\"row_inner col_align_top tf_box tf_w tf_rel\">\n\t\t\t<div  data-lazy=\"1\" class=\"module_column tb-column col-full first tb_slua79 tf_box\">\n\t    \t    \t        <div class=\"tb-column-inner tf_box tf_w\">\n\t\t    <!-- module text -->\n<div  class=\"module module-text tb_7znz819\" data-lazy=\"1\">\n            <div  class=\"tb_text_wrap\">\n        <\/div>\n<\/div>\n<!-- \/module text -->\t        <\/div>\n\t    \t<\/div>\n\t\t    <\/div>\n\t    <!-- \/row_inner -->\n\t<\/div>\n\t<!-- \/module_row -->\n\t<\/div>\n<!--\/themify_builder_content-->","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Since 2009, the Post-Conviction Clinic at the Sandra Day O\u2019Connor College of Law (PCC) at Arizona State University has been dedicated to providing pro bono legal assistance to criminal defendants with claims of wrongful conviction, manifest injustice, or those in imminent danger of death seeking clemency.<\/p>","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":2473,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_seopress_robots_primary_cat":"none","_seopress_titles_title":"Organization Profile - ASU Post-Conviction Clinic - Reclaim Your Future, Phoenix, AZ","_seopress_titles_desc":"Since 2009, the Post-Conviction Clinic at the Sandra Day O\u2019Connor College of Law (PCC) at Arizona State University has been dedicated to providing pro bono legal assistance to criminal defendants with claims of wrongful conviction, manifest injustice, or those in imminent danger of death seeking clemency.","_seopress_robots_index":"","cybocfi_hide_featured_image":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[25,46],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2468","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-blog","category-organization-profile","has-post-title","has-post-date","has-post-category","has-post-tag","has-post-comment","has-post-author",""," cat-25"," cat-46"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/azexpunge.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/asu-oconnorbldg.jpg","builder_content":"<h1>Organization Profile<br\/><\/h1>\n<svg> <circle r=\"calc(50% - 1.5px)\" cx=\"50%\" cy=\"50%\" stroke-width=\"3\"\/> <circle r=\"calc(50% - 1.5px)\" cx=\"50%\" cy=\"50%\" stroke=\"#ee2312\" stroke-width=\"3\" data-progress=\"100\" stroke-dasharray=\"0,10000\"\/> <\/svg> <img style=\"width:calc(100% - 6px);height:calc(100% - 6px)\" src=\"https:\/\/azexpunge.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/asu-oconnorbldg.jpg\" alt=\"Reclaim Your Future - ASU Post-conviction Clinic - AZ Expungement Coalition\"> <h3> ASU Post-Conviction Clinic <\/h3>\n\n<p><strong>Reclaim Your Future <\/strong>(RYF) is a statewide campaign funded by a grant from the Arizona Department of Health Services to help people expunge, or seal, their marijuana-related public criminal records. The campaign is run by organizations in central, southern and northern Arizona that make up the Arizona Marijuana Expungement Coalition.<\/p> <p>As part of our efforts to better inform the public about Prop 207 and expungement, we are profiling the members of our Coalition and helping them explain the work they do. This week, meet the <a href=\"https:\/\/law.asu.edu\/experiences\/clinics\/post-conviction\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><strong>Arizona State University Post-Conviction Clinic<\/strong><\/a> and its supervising attorney, <a href=\"https:\/\/search.asu.edu\/profile\/1243293\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><strong>Randy McDonald<\/strong><\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>[embed]https:\/\/youtu.be\/2t9cBN8Aw8M[\/embed]<\/p> <p><strong>RYF: <\/strong>Randy, explain to folks what exactly post-conviction relief is and why the clinic is so important in the community that you serve.<\/p> <p><strong>Randy McDonald: <\/strong>Post-conviction relief is, as the term implies, anything legal that a criminal defendant can do to attack his or her conviction after it is final. So, we do a number of different things. We represent criminal defendants in parole hearings. We do post-conviction appeals. We help people file applications for commutation. And now with the help of the Arizona Justice Project (AJP) and the grant we received from the state of Arizona, we are helping people go back and expunge marijuana convictions that became final many years ago.<\/p> <p><strong>RYF:<\/strong> Can you give us a real-world example of post-conviction relief?<\/p> <p><strong>RM: <\/strong>Sure. I think the type of case that people might be most familiar with is a DNA-type case. After DNA technology became more prevalent, a lot of prisoners and criminal defendants began going back and testing biological samples that were collected, but were unable to be tested, and discovered that, in fact, the DNA profiles that were found in these cases didn't match them. And so, they would file a post-conviction relief petition with the court to say, \"I found this new evidence. This DNA test shows that I am not the person who committed this crime, so my conviction should be overturned.\" And so, I think that the most prevalent types of post-conviction cases that we're most familiar with are DNA cases where DNA results have exonerated someone.<\/p> <p>But it doesn't have to be DNA testing. It could be any kind of new evidence. It could be a change in the law. It could be evidence of a constitutional violation, for instance, if we discovered that the prosecutor had withheld evidence from the defense that could have helped the defense. Post-conviction is a bunch of things. It is sort of the umbrella term that we use to describe any kind of legal relief that you're seeking after the conviction becomes final.<\/p> <p><strong>RYF: <\/strong>How is that different from an appeal?<\/p> <p><strong>RM: <\/strong>An appeal is something that happens right after the conviction, and it happens as a right. In most American jurisdictions, you have an automatic right to an appeal before your conviction becomes final. And in an appeal, you can challenge legal issues that had to do with the trial. So, for instance, you can say, \"This evidence shouldn't have been admitted against me at trial.\" Or you can say, \"This particular jury instruction was wrong, and it didn't correctly describe the offense.\" So, when you're looking at an appeal, you're basically reading the transcript of a trial and you're looking for errors that happened at trial. Whereas a post-conviction petition involves any type of new evidence you can bring in any kind of claim that wasn't necessarily part of the original trial. That's why newly-discovered evidence is kind of the archetype of a post-conviction petition.<\/p> <p><strong>RYF:<\/strong> Can anyone access the legal aid that the Clinic provides? Anybody in the community?<\/p> <p><strong>RM: <\/strong>The vast majority of our clients are individuals who are incarcerated in Arizona's prison system. We do have very few folks that we have helped who have either [already] served their sentence or are in the federal prison system. But anyone who has a criminal conviction could access the help of the Post-Conviction Clinic. We typically partner with the Arizona Justice Project, who does a lot of the intake of our cases. So, people write to AJP, and AJP will refer to us cases that seem like they would benefit from some of our investigation.<\/p> <p><strong>RYF:<\/strong> Would you explain to folks why it's called a \u201cclinic\u201d?<\/p> <p><strong>RM: <\/strong>We operate within the <a href=\"https:\/\/law.asu.edu\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Arizona State University College of Law<\/a>. I'm an attorney, and there is one other attorney who works with the Clinic. But other than that, everyone who does work for the Clinic is a law student. And so, the clinical education program here at ASU has a number of components. There's a Civil Litigation Clinic, there's an Immigration Clinic, and there is the Post-Conviction Clinic. And so, it is a clinic in the sense that we are providing clinical education or hands-on education to students, and those students are providing legal services for people in the community.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAnd now, we represent folks who have marijuana convictions who, by expunging those convictions, are able to go back and seek re-sentencing to get out of prison earlier.\"<\/p>\n<p><strong>RYF:<\/strong> Got it. How long has the ASU Post-Conviction Clinic been around?<\/p> <p><strong>RM<\/strong>: So, AJP, which founded the Post-Conviction Clinic, was founded several years ago. And it was one of the very first state-level innocence projects. So, I think a lot of people are familiar with the Innocence Project, which is the nationwide project that seeks to overturn wrongful convictions. The <a href=\"https:\/\/azjusticeproject.org\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Arizona Justice Project<\/a> is a project like that, but it operates exclusively in Arizona. And it doesn't only take on cases of innocence, but cases of what we call \u201cmanifest injustice.\u201d So, lengthy sentences, juvenile offenders, [and] cases where perhaps innocence and guilt aren\u2019t being contested, but AJP thinks that there's some sort of injustice that has occurred, and they want to represent the defendant.<\/p> <p>The Clinic came about because, around 2008, the United States Congress created a grant called a Bloodsworth grant, named after <a href=\"https:\/\/innocenceproject.org\/cases\/kirk-bloodsworth\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Kirk Bloodsworth<\/a>, who is the very first person on death row who was exonerated using DNA technology. This grant funded programs that would investigate post-conviction claims of innocence using DNA technology. And AJP was awarded one of these very first grants and, using that grant, founded the Post-Conviction Clinic at ASU. There are many clinics like ours at law schools across the country, but like the Innocence Project, many of these clinics are geared toward proving claims of innocence. In other words, they only take cases where the clients claim that they are innocent of the crime charged. The Post-Conviction Clinic is a little bit different in that we do take innocence cases. We do try and overturn wrongful convictions. But we also take many cases in which we think there's been a manifest injustice.<\/p> <p>We've represented folks who have terminal illnesses trying to get commutation or clemency. We represent folks who were juveniles when they committed their offenses and are in prison for the rest of their lives. We represent them in parole hearings and in post-conviction proceedings. And now, we represent folks who have marijuana convictions who, by expunging those convictions, are able to go back and seek re-sentencings to get out of prison earlier than they otherwise would have.<\/p> <p><strong>RYF:<\/strong> Sounds like a lot of work. Tell us about who works with you at the clinic.<\/p> <p><strong>RM: <\/strong>I'm the supervising attorney. I work here full-time, and I supervise the rest of the staff and the students who work at the clinic. There's another attorney who works with us part-time, <a href=\"https:\/\/search.asu.edu\/profile\/1744371\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Joey Dormady<\/a>, who is in the administration here at ASU and also helps me to supervise some of the cases. We have a legal fellow who is funded by the Prop 207 grant that we received, Andi Humphreys. And she is a recent law school graduate and soon to be an attorney. In fact, she should [pass the bar exam] within a few days here, we hope. And she is helping us by basically overseeing all of the marijuana expungement-related litigation that our students are working on.<\/p> <p>And then there are the students themselves. In any given semester, we have 10 to 15 students who are working with us on various cases. Each student will be assigned their own caseload. They'll be responsible for investigating the cases for drafting any documents related to the cases for speaking to the clients, for developing any legal strategy.<\/p>\n<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"800\" height=\"453\" src=\"https:\/\/azexpunge.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/pcc-keithharrisonfamily_800x453.jpg\" title=\"pcc-keithharrisonfamily_800x453\" alt=\"In November 2022, attorneys with the Reclaim Your Future campaign successfully fought for the release of Keith Harrison, a 58-year-old Phoenix resident who was sentenced to LIFE in prison in 1993 while he was on probation for marijuana possession.\" srcset=\"https:\/\/azexpunge.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/pcc-keithharrisonfamily_800x453.jpg 800w, https:\/\/azexpunge.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/pcc-keithharrisonfamily_800x453-300x170.jpg 300w, https:\/\/azexpunge.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/pcc-keithharrisonfamily_800x453-768x435.jpg 768w, https:\/\/azexpunge.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/pcc-keithharrisonfamily_800x453-18x10.jpg 18w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\" \/> In November 2022, attorneys with the Reclaim Your Future campaign successfully fought for the release of Keith Harrison, a 58-year-old Phoenix resident who was sentenced to LIFE in prison in 1993 while he was on probation for marijuana possession.\n<p><strong>RYF: <\/strong>Besides the work that you've done with the Coalition, what are some of the clinic's big victories for the people who have sought your assistance?<\/p> <p><strong>RM: <\/strong>I think the biggest impact that we've had is for people who are seeking either clemency or parole. We've represented a number of people who committed offenses when they were juveniles. We've represented them at parole hearings, and a number of them have been paroled and are now out in the community and really thriving. We know that by and large, people who commit criminal offenses as juveniles are much less likely to re-offend than people who commit offenses later in life. And so, we have helped a number of those folks get parole and sort of reintegrate back into the community. And what that means is representing them at the parole hearing, helping them by putting together release plans, and helping them do the things that they need when they get back out into the community.<\/p> <p><strong>RYF:<\/strong> There are seven organizations around the state, including the Post-Conviction Clinic, that are part of the Arizona Marijuana Expungement Coalition. Tell us about the Post-Conviction Clinic's contributions to the Coalition.<\/p> <p><strong>RM: <\/strong>We have focused on representing individuals who are incarcerated in Arizona prisons who have sentences that are enhanced by prior marijuana convictions. In Arizona, when you commit a criminal offense, if you have historical prior criminal offenses, the state can lengthen your sentence because you're a [so-called] \"repetitive offender.\" What we have been doing is we've been finding folks who have longer sentences because of previous marijuana convictions. We've been expunging those convictions, and we've been getting back into court and asking courts to re-sentence these folks so that their sentences can be shorter. And we've had a lot of success with that. We have helped a number of people so far either shorten their sentences or walk free, almost immediately.<\/p> <p>Another issue that we've come up against is the question of whether a person who is convicted of possession for sale [of marijuana] is convicted of possession of marijuana, which is expungable, or is convicted of selling marijuana, which is not expungable. Although the statute approved by Arizona voters may seem pretty clear, there are a lot of gray areas that are not really explained in the law that we need to litigate and ask the courts to decide. Other organizations in the Coalition have been referring us cases that get a little bit more complicated and require a little bit more working up and litigating in the state trial and appellate courts.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt's an emotional thing to have happen. It's exciting work to be able to get these folks back to their families and back out in the community where they need to be.\"<\/p>\n<p><strong>RYF:<\/strong> Presumably, those particular cases where you're able to get somebody home, those are especially rewarding.<\/p> <p><strong>RM: <\/strong>Yes, I agree with that. I can think of one [client] in particular. Because of Covid restrictions, we had not been able to meet with this client until he literally walked into the courtroom where he was going to be resentenced. And so, my first opportunity to actually meet him was when we were sitting in the courtroom and he was being resentenced, and the judge was basically resentencing him to time served. So, he was going to leave the courtroom, go back to the jail, and be processed out almost immediately. It's an emotional thing to have happen. It's exciting work to be able to get these folks back to their families and back out in the community where they need to be.<\/p> <p>[embed]https:\/\/youtu.be\/aj0sqtVPJBk[\/embed]<\/p> <p><strong>RYF: <\/strong>How do you think the Clinic might evolve going forward with laws changing in Arizona such as the legalization of adult recreational use of marijuana and the expansion of expungement opportunities?<\/p> <p><strong>RM: <\/strong>One thing that we have been able to do much more recently is working with prosecution offices in the state of Arizona to sort of reach a common goal that we both agree should happen. So, for instance, with these marijuana resentencings, the state agrees with us that these folks should be resentenced. They just need representation to walk through that process. And we're finding that there is much more of an appetite for criminal justice reform now, such that county attorney's offices that historically have been very tough on crime\u2014and when I say tough on crime, I mean they want lengthy prison sentences for offenses that are not always violent, do not always necessarily require these lengthy sentences\u2014the county attorneys are now willing to work with us to get folks with longer sentences either resentenced or get them out on parole or get them out on some sort of supervised release. Because they realize that justice does not always mean throwing someone in jail and throwing away the key.<\/p> <p>So, I will say I'm hopeful that we're able to work with prosecution offices more frequently in the future towards a common [goal]. We're not always going to agree with the prosecutors. We're going to litigate some cases. We're going to fight with them on occasion. But I think both the prosecution office and the Clinic want to serve the ends of justice. And when we can agree on what justice is, that's a happy time for everyone. So, I'm hopeful that, as the Clinic evolves, we will be able to do more of that type of work.<\/p> <p><em>To learn more about what students do at the Post-Conviction Clinic at ASU, go to: <a href=\"https:\/\/law.asu.edu\/experiences\/clinics\/post-conviction\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">https:\/\/law.asu.edu\/experiences\/clinics\/post-conviction<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/azexpunge.org\/nv\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2468","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/azexpunge.org\/nv\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/azexpunge.org\/nv\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/azexpunge.org\/nv\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/7"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/azexpunge.org\/nv\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2468"}],"version-history":[{"count":19,"href":"https:\/\/azexpunge.org\/nv\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2468\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2536,"href":"https:\/\/azexpunge.org\/nv\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2468\/revisions\/2536"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/azexpunge.org\/nv\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2473"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/azexpunge.org\/nv\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2468"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/azexpunge.org\/nv\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2468"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/azexpunge.org\/nv\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2468"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}