On March 2, the Supreme Court heard oral arguments in the matter of District Attorney's Office v. William G. Osborne.  Peter Neufeld, co-founder of the Innocence Project at the Cardozo School of Law, argued on behalf of Mr. Osborne.  The case raises questions over the existence of a constitutional right to post-conviction DNA testing.

In 1994 an Alaska state court found Osborne guilty of kidnapping and sexual assault.  Osborne subsequently sought access to evidence for DNA testing, but was denied by the District Attorney's Office.  The D.A.O.'s decision was reached despite their admission that testing could exonerate him and that the testing would come at no cost to the state.  In response to their refusal, Osborne filed a lawsuit in federal district court, alleging that his due process rights had been violated.  After a favorable decision for Osborne by the Court of Appeals, the DAO appealed the case to the Supreme Court.

For a transcript of the arguments, please click here.

For the NY Times article on this matter, please click here.    

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