Criminal Justice

Establishing Innocence or Guilt

Causes of and Solutions to Wrongful Convictions

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Plano, Texas, USA

Past Event

MCLE Credit will be available

The Center for American and International Law
5201 Democracy Drive
Plano, Texas 75024

Online registration is closed. Walk-in registrations will be accepted at the door.

Registrar: +1.972.244.3404
Fax: +1.972.244.3401
E-Mail: cail@cailaw.org

Overview

This program is funded by a grant from the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals. Thanks to this grant, the seminar is offered tuition-free to most participants.

Access Program Materials
Restricted (Registrants Only)

Who Should Attend?

Judges, Prosecutors and their staff, Criminal Defense Attorneys and their staff, Law Enforcement Officers, and law students.

Download the Brochure (pdf)

For more details, download the online brochure.

Revised Schedule and Faculty as of 2/27

Wednesday, March 1

8:00 am


Check-in & Registration

9:00 am


Overview on Actual Innocence

  • Inger Chandler, Inger H. Chandler, PLLC, Conroe, Texas

10:00 am


DNA basics

  • Lynn Robitaille Garcia, General Counsel, Texas Forensic Science Commission, Austin, Texas

11:00 am


Break

11:15 am


PCAST- Implication For the Prosecution & Defense

  • Lynn Robitaille Garcia, General Counsel, Texas Forensic Science Commission, Austin, Texas
  • Brady W Mills, Deputy Assistant Director, Texas Department of Public Safety, Austin, Texas
  • Nicolas Hughes, Assistant Public Defender, Harris County Public Defender’s Office, Houston, Texas
  • Dawn Boswell, Conviction Integrity Unit Chief, Tarrant Co. District Attorney’s Office, Fort Worth, Texas

12:15 pm


Lunch (provided)

12:45 pm


The San Antonio 4

  • Michael Ware, Executive Director, The Innocence Project of Texas, Law Office of Michael Ware, Fort Worth, Texas
  • Anna Vasquez

1:45 pm


Break

2:00 pm


A Post-Brady World

  • Bill Wirskye, First Assistant, Collin Co. District Attorney’s Office, McKinney, Texas

3:00 pm


Break

3:15 pm


Eyewitness Investigations – A Refresher

  • Jules Epstein, Director of Advocacy Programs, Temple University Beasley School of Law, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

4:15 pm


Breakout discussions

5:00 pm


Recess & Reception

Thursday, March 2

9:00 am


Asking The Right Questions About Forensic Science – A Primer for Prosecution & Defense

  • Lynn Robitaille Garcia, General Counsel, Texas Forensic Science Commission, Austin, Texas
  • Bob Wicoff, Appellate Division Chief, Harris County Public Defender's Office, Houston, Texas
  • Dawn Boswell, Conviction Integrity Unit Chief, Tarrant Co. District Attorney’s Office, Fort Worth, Texas
  • Cynthia Garza, Acting Chief, Conviction Integrity Unit, Dallas Co. District Attorney’s Office, Dallas, Texas

10:00 am


Cognitive Bias

  • Dr. Daniel Murrie, Professor, University of Virginia School of Medicine, Charlottesville, Virginia

11:00 am


Break

11:15 am


Implicit Bias

  • Dr. Richard Anthony Baker, Assistant Vice Chancellor/Vice President, Equal Opportunity Services, University of Houston, Houston, Texas

12:15 pm


Lunch (Provided)

1:15 pm


Root Cause Analysis, followed by a Case Study

  • Led by: John Hollway, Associate Dean and Executive Director, The Quattrone Center for the Fair Administration of Justice, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

3:15 pm


Break

3:30 pm


Snitches

  • Chris Mumma, Executive Director, North Carolina Center on Actual Innocence, Durham, North Carolina

4:15 pm


Drug Tests and Actual Innocence

  • Nicolas Hughes, Assistant Public Defender, Harris County Public Defender’s Office, Houston, Texas

5:00 pm


Recess

Friday, March 3

9:00 am


Firearms Case Study

  • James Jeffress, Forensic Scientist, Texas Department of Public Safety Crime Laboratory, Garland, Texas
  • Bill Wirskye, First Assistant, Collin Co. District Attorney’s Office, McKinney, Texas
  • Thomas Ashworth, Chief Felony Prosecutor, Collin Co. District Attorney’s Office, McKinney, Texas

10:30 am


Break

10:45 am


Legislative and Case Law update

  • Gary Udashen, Sorrels, Udashen & Anton, Dallas, Texas

12:00 pm


Lunch (Provided)

1:00 pm


Ethics Panel

  • Patricia Cummings, Attorney at Law, Round Rock, Texas
  • Dawn Boswell, Conviction Integrity Unit Chief, Tarrant Co. District Attorney’s Office, Fort Worth, Texas
  • Gary Udashen, Sorrels, Udashen & Anton, Dallas, Texas
  • Cynthia Garza, Acting Chief, Conviction Integrity Unit, Dallas Co. District Attorney’s Office, Dallas, Texas

2:00 pm


Overview On Memory- How Reliable is it? (includes a 15-minute break)

  • Dr. Nancy K. Steblay, Professor, Augsburg College, Minneapolis, Minnesota

3:30 pm


Break

3:45 pm


Breakout Discussions: Lessons learned

4:30 pm


Adjourn

CLE Credit

The State Bar of Texas has approved this program for a total of 19 hours, including 1 hour of ethics. Course ID Number: 901372629.

In addition to Texas, after the program (if requested) CAIL will directly apply for course accreditation in the following states, as long as course materials and evaluations are not required: California, New Mexico, and Oklahoma. Attorneys may be eligible to receive CLE credit through attorney self-submission in other states, as long as course materials and evaluations are not required to be submitted.

Overnight Accommodations

Hyatt Place Plano welcomes our guests attending Establishing Innocence or Guilt, at The Center for American and International Law. We have set aside a block of rooms with a group rate of $97 plus applicable fees/taxes for 2/28/17 - 3/3/17.

Please make your reservations by 2/12/2017. As long as the reservation is made by this date, and the group block has availability, you will receive the group rate. Any reservations not received on or before this cut-off date are subject to hotel availability at the best available prevailing rate.

Booking Instructions

Book online

Type in Arrival/Departure Dates
Enter Group/Corporate #: G-CL71
or
Call 888-HYATT-HP (888.492.8847) or 972.378.3997

Dates available: 2/28/17 - 3/3/17
Mention the group name: CAILAW / Establishing Innocence or Guilt

  • A valid credit card is required to make reservations
  • Tax Exemption Certificates and Credit Card Authorization Forms may be faxed to the hotel directly at 972.608.4427 prior to your arrival.

Other Information

Cancellation Policy

Written cancellation must be received 5 business days prior to a program to receive a refund (Email: lgaspar@cailaw.org). After this date, no refunds, but substitution of attendees for this program will be permitted with prior approval. Registrants not entitled to a refund will receive the course materials. Note: Registrants must attend the program to receive the course materials, unless tuition was paid.

Nondiscriminatory Policy

The Center for American and International Law does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, sex, religion, national origin, age, disability, veteran status or any other protected status in educational activities, scholarship programs or admissions.

Privacy Policy

We do not sell or rent information to any outside parties. By providing your information, you will receive postal and electronic communications from The Center for American and International Law (CAIL) in accordance with CAIL's Privacy Policy. If we co-sponsor a program with another organization, information may be shared between the parties. All such co-sponsors will be identified on the event details and registration page. At any point, you can opt-out or unsubscribe by selecting either link at the bottom of each email or call us at 972.244.3400.