CPCS Innocence Program Webinar Training: Litigating Complex Rule 30 Motions: Case Studies Involving Eyewitness Identifications, False/Coerced Confessions, and Brady Violations

Wednesday February 1, 2:00 - 4:00 p.m.

Wednesday, February 8, 2:00 - 4:00 p.m.

Wednesday, February 15, 2:00 - 4:00 p.m.

This webinar series offers practical, case-based strategies for evaluating and building a record in support of Rule 30 motions that relate to three common causes of wrongful convictions: Eyewitness Identifications, False/ Coerced Confessions, and Brady Violations. Using concrete examples from successful cases, each two hour session will walk participants through the steps needed to identify, investigate and present claims involving one of these subject areas.

Feb. 1, 2023: Eyewitness Identifications. In this session, Innocence Program Staff Counsel Jill Tessier and eyewitness ID expert Dr. Nancy Franklin will discuss their approaches to identifying sources of eyewitness error and working with experts to effectively present them in court. Attorney Merritt Schnipper will then describe the role that eyewitness error claims played in overturning the 1976 murder conviction of Raymond Gaines.

Feb. 8, 2023: Brady violations. In this session, Innocence Program Director Lisa Kavanaugh and Attorneys Jeff Harris and Chauncey Wood will explore the unique challenges of uncovering evidence of Brady violations. Using concrete examples from their own cases, they will describe the specific strategies they employed to develop, document and litigate Brady claims. Participants will also hear from MA exoneree Robert Foxworth, who will talk about the importance of partnering with your client to develop and present these claims.

Feb. 15, 2023: False and unreliable confessions. In this session, Innocence Program Staff Counsel Libby Hugetz will provide a brief introduction about how to identify the various forms of false and coerced confessions. Participants will then hear from Attorney Charlotte Whitmore, BC Innocence Program, and Jim Trainum, expert/retired DC homicide detective, on how to best collaborate in such cases through the lens of a previously litigated successful Innocence Program case.

**Each webinar has been approved for 2.0 CLE credits per virtual session, or 6.0 CLE credits total, for attorneys on the Private Counsel Division criminal trial and appeals panels and the YAD trial and appeals panels.**

Litigating Complex Rule 30 Motions: Case Studies in What Worked