Conviction Integrity Act of 2021
Bill: S.2772 | Sponsor: Sen. Klobuchar, Amy (D-MN)
Policy area: Crime and Law Enforcement

Summary:
Conviction Integrity Act of 2021
This bill requires the Department of Justice to administer grant programs within the Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA) to encourage the review of possible cases of wrongful conviction and facilitate post-conviction relief.
Specifically, the bill directs the BJA to make grants to create state and local conviction integrity units or entities that receive petitions for or review wrongful convictions and wrongful sentences.
Additionally, the BJA must make grants to support high-quality post-conviction legal representation for defendants who make post-conviction claims of innocence.

To provide Federal support to entities performing reviews of wrongful 
                              convictions.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Conviction Integrity Act of 2021''.

SEC. 2. GRANT PROGRAMS TO ENSURE CASE REVIEW, REPRESENTATION, AND 
              PROVIDE POST-CONVICTION RELIEF.

    (a) Purpose.--The Attorney General shall administer grant programs 
within the Bureau of Justice Assistance, to encourage the review of 
possible cases of wrongful conviction and facilitate post-conviction 
relief by establishing or expanding State and local conviction 
integrity units and by providing high-quality representation for 
defendants litigating post-conviction claims of innocence.
    (b) Conviction Integrity Unit Grants.--
            (1) Eligible entity defined.--In this subsection, the term 
        ``eligible entity'' means a prosecutor's office or a State 
        attorney general's office that may work in partnership with a 
        nonprofit organization, law school innocence clinic, or public 
        defender's office dedicated to receiving petitions for or 
        reviewing wrongful convictions and wrongful sentences.
            (2) Authorization.--The Attorney General, acting through 
        the Director of the Bureau of Justice Assistance, shall make 
        grants to eligible entities for the purpose of creating State 
        and local conviction integrity units or entities.
            (3) Application requirements.--Each application for a grant 
        under this subsection shall--
                    (A) demonstrate a plan by the applicant to create, 
                maintain, or expand a State or local conviction 
                integrity unit with the intention to conduct 
                substantive, evidence-based conviction review;
                    (B) develop a tool to survey or conduct focus 
                groups with community members, non-profit 
                organizations, or public defender offices dedicated to 
                receiving petitions for or reviewing wrongful 
                convictions, and existing local Conviction Integrity 
                Units in order to identify--
                            (i) the needs of individuals or their 
                        counsel seeking review of their convictions or 
                        sentences; and
                            (ii) the needs of existing local conviction 
                        integrity units and non-profit organizations or 
                        public defender's offices dedicated to 
                        receiving petitions for or reviewing wrongful 
                        convictions;
                    (C) use the information gathered under subparagraph 
                (B) and conviction integrity unit best practices to 
                advise procedural conduct in conviction review;
                    (D) develop procedures to ensure that conviction 
                integrity unit is able to operate independently in 
                rules and practice from the other units within the 
                district attorney's offices or any prosecutors 
                previously involved with the case;
                    (E) in the case of a prosecutor's office that 
                cannot meet the requirement in subparagraph (D) because 
                of the size of the office, provide a written policy 
                detailing reasonable steps that shall be taken to 
                preserve independence and ethical integrity during the 
                investigation;
                    (F) allow for meaningful participation in the 
                review process by petitioner's counsel; and
                    (G) develop victim notification procedures for 
                final exonerations as appropriate.
            (4) Preference.--In awarding grants under this subsection, 
        the Attorney General shall give preference to applicants who 
        demonstrate a partnership with a nonprofit organization, law 
        school innocence clinic, or public defender's office dedicated 
        to receiving petitions for or review wrongful convictions and 
        wrongful sentences.
            (5) Authorization of appropriations.--There are authorized 
        to be appropriated $10,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2022 
        through 2027 to carry out this subsection, of which not more 
        than 5 percent of the grant funding shall be used for training 
        and technical assistance for grantees.
    (c) Wrongful Conviction Review Grants.--
            (1) Eligible entity defined.--In this subsection, the term 
        ``eligible entity'' means a non-profit organization, 
        institution of higher education, or State or local public 
        defender office that has in-house post-conviction 
        representation programs that show demonstrable experience or 
        competence in litigating post-conviction claims of innocence.
            (2) Authorization.--The Attorney General shall establish a 
        wrongful conviction review grant program and award grants to 
        eligible entities for the purpose of providing high-quality 
        post-conviction representation for defendants in post-
        conviction claims of innocence.
            (3) Use of funds.--A grant awarded under this subsection 
        shall be used to support an eligible entity in providing--
                    (A) post-conviction legal representation of 
                innocence claims;
                    (B) case review, evaluation, and management;
                    (C) experts;
                    (D) potentially exonerative forensic testing; and
                    (E) investigation services related to supporting 
                these post-conviction innocence claims.
            (4) Authorization of appropriations.--There are authorized 
        to be appropriated $30,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2022 
        through 2027 to carry out this subsection.
                                 <all>