Panelists included Richard Phillips, who was convicted in Detroit in 1972 and exonerated 45 years later; his attorney, Gabi Silver; Wayne County Circuit Court Judge Kevin J. Cox, who granted Phillips a new trial; and Valerie Newman, director of the Wayne County Prosecutor’s Office CIU and director of the Conviction Integrity Clinic.
Other exonerees attended and shared their experiences in prison and with the CIU.
Phillips is the second longest-serving exoneree in the country and was the first exoneration by the Wayne County Prosecutor’s Office CIU.
He was convicted of armed robbery and first-degree murder in 1972. In 2017, he was exonerated in Wayne County of the first-degree murder charge.
On the same day as the panel discussion, Phillips was exonerated in Oakland County of the armed robbery charge — the first exoneree from the Oakland County Prosecutor’s Office CIU.
This exoneration makes Phillips one of the only double exonerees in the nation.
Detroit Mercy Law launched the Conviction Integrity Clinic in fall 2021 in partnership with the Wayne County Prosecutor’s Office as part of the School of Law’s expansive clinical offerings.
The clinic provides students with the opportunity to help incarcerated individuals with felony convictions who claim innocence and who otherwise may not have access to legal services.
The clinic educates students about the issues which lead to wrongful convictions and engages students directly in the review of innocence claims made by individuals who have been convicted of a crime.
Detroit Mercy Law, inspired by the Jesuit and Mercy traditions, educates lawyers who are committed to the pursuit of justice, service to others, and the highest standards of the legal profession.
Each year, Detroit Mercy Law students provide over 35,000 hours of pro bono legal services to residents of Detroit and the surrounding communities.
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