Wrongful Compensation Laws, State by State

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Wrongful Compensation Laws, State by State
February 11, 2007

Lawmakers in Washington state will consider a measure that would
compensate people who were wrongfully convicted and incarcerated. If
passed, the state will join 21 other states, the District of Columbia
and the federal government with similar laws on the books.

Alabama: Minimum of $50,000 per year of incarceration, but
Legislature must appropriate the money.

California: $100 per day of incarceration; limit of $10,000.

District of Columbia: No limit.

Illinois: Up to five years, no more than $15,000; between five and 14 years, no more than $30,000; more than 14 years, up to $35,000.
Attorney fees up to 25 percent of the award.

Iowa: $50 per day with limit of $18,250, plus lost wages up to
$25,000 per year and attorney’s fees.

Louisiana: $15,000 per year of incarceration, with a maximum award of $150,000; court may award costs of job training and tuition.

Maine: Maximum award of $300,000; no punitive damages.

Maryland: No limit.

Massachusetts: A maximum award of $500,000 and court may order physical and/or emotional treatment and educational services at any state or community college.

Missouri: $50 a day for post-conviction confinement.

Montana: Educational aid for those exonerated through post-conviction DNA testing.

New Hampshire: Maximum of $20,000.

New Jersey: Twice the amount of the claimant’s income in the year
prior to incarceration or $20,000 per year of incarceration, whichever is greater.

New York: No limit.

North Carolina: $20,000 per year, with a maximum total of $500,000.

Ohio: As much as $25,000 for each year in prison, plus lost wages, attorney fees, fines and court costs.

Oklahoma: Maximum of $175,000.

Tennessee: Maximum of $1 million.

Texas: $25,000 for each year up to 20 years; or $500,000 for 20 years or more. Attorney fees, lost wages and counseling expenses for up to one year. This year, lawmakers are considering a measure that would
double the amount for each year in prison.

Virginia: 90 percent of the Virginia per capita personal income for
up to 20 years; tuition worth $10,000 in the Virginia Community
College system.

West Virginia: No limit.

Wisconsin: Limit of $5,000 for each year in prison, with a total cap
of $25,000, plus attorney fees. Claims board can ask the Legislature
to award more.

Federal Level: $50,000 per year of incarceration for non-death row
cases; $100,000 per year for death row cases.

Source: The Innocence Project, National Conference of State
Legislatures.

http://www.kitsapsun.com/bsun/local/art ... 71,00.html

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Monday, February 12, 2007
Bill would pay for wrongful years behind bars

By RACHEL LA CORTE
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

OLYMPIA -- Every day for more than five months, Jeff Schmieder walked
hundreds of laps around the courtyard at the Regional Justice Center
in Kent, where he was serving time for a first-degree rape that he
did not commit.

"Walking was the only thing I had left. It just gave me a lot of time
to think to myself, and get my head straight," said Schmieder, who
was convicted in 1998 and faced more than 11 years in prison.
"Everyone in there says they're not guilty, of course. But when
you're really not, it does things to your mind that you can't even
imagine."

Schmieder, 49, and another man, Mark Clark, were freed in 1999 after
new evidence showed the alleged victim was in jail herself at the
time she said she was attacked.

Under a measure lawmakers are considering this year, people such as
Schmieder would be compensated by the state for the years they lost
behind bars. If it is passed, Washington would join 21 states, the
District of Columbia and the federal government with similar laws on
the books.

"When you're imprisoned you lose everything," said Rep. Joe
McDermott, D-Seattle, the bill's sponsor. "We should have procedures
in place to make someone who's been wrongfully convicted whole, in
some small part."

McDermott's measure -- which mirrors federal levels -- would require
the state to award a wrongly convicted person no less than $50,000
for each year of imprisonment, including time spent awaiting trial.
An additional $50,000 would be awarded for each year on death row.

Mental and physical costs also would be awarded, as well as damages
for lost wages, job training and up to 10 years of health insurance
from the state.

Supporters of compensation laws say the measure is the fair thing to do.

http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/local/303 ... source=rss

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New Report: States Failing to Compensate the Exonerated

A report http://www.innocenceproject.org/Content/2276.php released today by the Innocence Project finds devastating gaps in the support and services that states provide to people exonerated after serving years in prison for crimes they didn’t commit.

Only about 60% of the 245 people exonerated through DNA testing in the United States have been compensated, and the vast majority of them waited years for very small amounts of money and received no support services.

Compensation varies widely from state to state. A staggering 23 states do not offer any compensation to the exonerated. Laws in the other 27 states run the gamut, from a maximum total of $20,000 in New Hampshire no matter how many years a person served to $80,000 per year in Texas with no maximum. On average, it has taken exonerees nationwide three years to access the funds.

The new Innocence Project report -- "Making up for Lost Time: What the Wrongfully Convicted Endure and How to Provide Fair Compensation" -- outlines recommendations for states to improve their compensation laws, at least to match the federal standard. The guidelines include paying exonerees $50,000 per year (as the federal government and just six states currently do) and providing services like housing and counseling immediately upon release. Among exonerees compensated to date, 81% have received less than the federal standard of $50,000 per year.

Some states are doing better than others, but every state can improve the way exonerees are compensated. The chart below shows the range of funds available to exonerees in 15 of the 27 states with compensation laws.



"When people are exonerated, they should find a safety net, not another long legal battle," Innocence Project Policy Director Stephen Saloom said today, announcing the report. "States have a responsibility to restore innocent people’s lives to the best of their abilities; every single state needs to pass a comprehensive compensation statute without further delay."

Read the Executive Summary and download the full report. http://www.innocenceproject.org/docs/In ... Report.pdf

Visit our interactive map to learn more about your state's compensation law.
http://www.innocenceproject.org/news/LawView1.php