Students working with the innocence projects are given the opportunity to apply knowledge acquired in the classroom as well as practical skills in the course of public interest work. The projects provide opportunities for developing core competencies such as interviewing clients and witnesses, searching for documents, conducting fact investigations, working with experts, and drafting case memoranda. Below are comments from former innocence clinic students reflecting on the value of their experiences.
University of Texas Center for Actual Innocence
“Participating in the Actual Innocence Clinic at the University of Texas School of Law has been the high-point of my experience as a law student. In the past few months I have learned more about how criminal law actually operates in the ‘real world’ than in all my other classes combined.” --Andy Garbe
“In the Clinic, I was able to retrace the steps of cases from the initial police reports to the trial transcripts to writs of habeas corpus and the appellate decisions on them. I highly recommend the Clinic, not only for those who want to become criminal defense attorneys, but also for anyone who wants to get a look at the guts of the Texas penal system.”--Brooke McGuire
“My participation in the actual innocence clinic has truly been an invaluable experience. On a personal level, it is very fulfilling to know that I am helping individuals that truly need my help, as most will not have any other avenues for obtaining review of their cases. Additionally, my participation in the clinic has provided me with valuable insight into the realities of legal practice and has given me an opportunity to hone a number of skills that will undoubtedly make me a better-prepared lawyer. ”--Amanda Suzuki
“The Clinic taught me how to manage a busy docket, interview witnesses, and communicate effectively with my superiors. It also taught me the importance of giving back to the community by providing pro bono legal services to the poor. I am a better lawyer and advocate for my clients because of the experiences I gained through the Clinic.” -- Jennifer Klein Ayers
Innocence Project of Texas (at Texas Tech)
“Participation in the Innocence Project of Texas clinic has been an invaluable and irreplaceable experience in my educational career. The process involved in producing a case recommendation, as well as the actual class time, provides a truly unique educational experience. There are lessons one might expect of a traditional law school class about post-conviction procedures, such as writs of habeas corpus and motions for DNA testing, but working in the IPOT clinic we also learn trial and appellate advocacy, legal strategy, the fact investigation process, and rules of evidence. Moreover, the clinic incorporates lessons in forensic science and we gain a robust understanding of how and why innocent people may be convicted.”-- Clint Buck
“Participating in the Innocence Project of Texas Clinic opened my eyes to the injustice that can be found in our system and provided students an opportunity to actually do something about it.” --Paige Tambunga
“The IPOT gave me a great opportunity to be mentored by some very talented practicing attorneys. The experience was a breath of fresh air from normal doctrinal law school courses.” --Jacob Schmidt
"This experience has given me knowledge about the Texas criminal justice system I would have never learned in a classroom. I feel my participation in the Innocence Project of Texas gives me the opportunity to change the world one case at a time."--Victoria Muniz
“The amount of experience and knowledge that the clinic has provided me is invaluable. My classroom knowledge meets the real world. My work at the clinic has inspired me to become a defense lawyer and has showed me the impact attorneys have on people.”--Tania Ward
“The Innocence Project of Texas has taught me the importance of diligence in representation of clients. I’m thankful I was able to be part of a movement aimed at restoring justice in the darkest of places. My most memorable experiences involve talking to exonerees and listening to their stories of hope and faith. Moreover, I was able to work with attorneys and volunteers who are passionate about justice and reform in the Texas criminal justice system.”--Alma R. Gonzalez
“My participation in the innocent project has been nothing but positive. I quickly learned that knowledge may be one thing, but experience is another. I loved having the opportunity to put my knowledge into action. Even when the law didn't allow or provide a solution, I felt a sense of accomplishment knowing that I helped to give someone's innocence claim a chance.”--Charity Joy Mireles
“I went to law school with the hope of one day helping someone who was wrongly convicted regain their freedom. I never thought I would get hands on experience in restoring justice while still in school.”--Thomas Barrett
University of Houston Innocence Project
“During my time in the Innocence Investigations class, I learned an immense amount about factual investigations and legal procedure by investigating real cases of real inmates with claims of actual innocence. Finding and interviewing witnesses, locating records, and delving into trials brought the law to life for me. After my experience with the class, I have become an attorney working solely for indigent defendants in the criminal courts. Although I initially went into law school with a different practice area in mind, the time I spent in Innocence Investigations made me realize that my skills were best spent helping those who need it most.” -- Frances Zeon Bourliot
“Innocence Investigations is a great opportunity for students to do two things at once. First, you a get strong grounding in criminal procedure and exposure to the realities of criminal courts, but more importantly it is also an opportunity to use and develop law skills while being of service to those incarcerated.” -- Brian Winegar
“Working on different case files helped me understand how the criminal justice system actually works. This class stands apart from the other classes I have taken because it is hands-on and practical. I enjoyed strategically using my new knowledge of the law. For example, I interviewed relatives of a victim and found that quite challenging. We also learned about topics such as fingerprinting methods and DNA testing. Today I want to pursue a career in criminal law, an area in which I was not seriously interested before having worked with the Texas Innocence Network.” -- Kelly Aimone
“The Innocence Investigations course provides students with a great opportunity to venture beyond the criminal law and procedure courses to better understand how the various parties in a trial dramatically affect the criminal justice process. I left the course with a better understanding of this human component through considering cases from multiple perspectives. The jury, the judge, the attorneys, and the appellant each brings its own perspective, and I was able to see these through the cases we worked on. From the appellate opinions by the Court, the appellant's written information explaining his or her story, what the attorneys said in the trial record, and finally what the jury did, each piece of a case provides its own human perspective. Putting these human elements together with the backdrop of the law was a really great experience, especially with the benefit of an instructor guiding us through these complex interactions and offering professional insight.” -- David Scott Shelton
“Though many casebooks talk about the forms of evidence and their role at trial, Innocence Investigations allows students the unique experience of examining and utilizing trial transcripts, police reports, affidavits, and lab reports in real cases. This provides a more thorough understanding of what evidence is important, why it is important, and how to effectively use the evidence in a case. Students also help draft letters to agencies and witnesses requesting information or evidence. I think that the practical and the classroom components of this class have taught me significantly more than I have learned in other classes in law school, and is valuable, not only for those interested in criminal law, but also for gaining a better understanding of the practical effects of legal processes, evidence, research, and communication which is applicable in all areas of law.” -- Andrea Boulares
TSU Thurgood Marshall School of Law Innocence Project
“During my two semesters with the Thurgood Marshall School of Law Innocence Project (TMSLIP) I learned the practical side of what I was taught in the class, such as client interviewing, investigating, and sharpening my legal research and writing skills. These skills are now incorporated into the foundation of my legal education. The TMSLIP has helped me realize that I want to be that lawyer that helps to change the flaws in the justice system, and not a lawyer who perpetuates them.” -- Angela Henderson
“The Innocence Clinic also provided me the opportunity to meet exonerees, and I left motivated to become the best attorney I could. I will make sure that no client of mine loses their life or liberty due to ineffective assistance of counsel or through the admission of flawed evidence.”-- Whitney White
“As I learned from the real stories of individuals who were wrongly incarcerated I received practical exposure to an area of law that I plan to pursue as a career. Although I want to work as a prosecutor, I will take this experience forward and do my best to work not solely for the purpose of seeking a conviction, but also for justice.” -- Monique Washington
“The Thurgood Marshall School of Law Innocence Project has helped me to recognize that as a lawyer, I need to always keep in mind I am working for a client who has trusted me with his or her future. As I see more and more cases, it makes me realize that some attorneys do not work to their full potential, and that such shortcomings can profoundly affect someone's life. TMSL IP reminds me of why I came to law school and motivates me to continue.” -- Elia Lopez
Previously I always tended to read cases from a prosecutorial perspective, as I want to be a prosecutor when I graduate. Since my involvement with the innocence project, however, I have been able to develop better analytical skills and have learned to look at cases from a defense perspective.” -- Jesus J. Estrada
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Updated: 18-Jul-2012
