Linda Starr wrote an op-ed for the San Jose Mercury News about the high risk of wrongfully convicted prisoners being executed under California’s Proposition 66, which was passed in November, 2016.
“We know that mistaken convictions happen—whether for pernicious or inadvertent reasons—and the post-conviction process is vitally important to ensuring these mistakes are revealed. Under the restrictions imposed by Proposition 66, many innocent defendants will be killed before they are able to present evidence of their actual innocence.
Specifically, Proposition 66 requires that initial habeas corpus petitions be filed within one year of capital defendants being appointed counsel, and dictates that a successive habeas petition “shall be dismissed” absent a finding that the defendant is likely actually innocent or categorically ineligible for the death penalty.”
