The Attorney General’s Justice Review Unit (JRU) is an independent unit within the Executive Bureau. The JRU reports directly to the AG’s Executive Team. The JRU is responsible for investigating innocence claims when the Attorney General’s Office (AGO) secured the conviction; supporting the Commonwealth’s District Attorney Offices (DAOs) in conviction integrity matters, including assistance with discovery requests related to innocence claims and accepting cases referrals because of conflicts of interest or resource issues; and developing trainings, policies, and best practices designed to address to the causative factors in wrongful convictions.
As part of its core mission, the JRU investigates claims of innocence to determine whether the person convicted was not the person who committed the crime and other cases where the integrity of the investigation that resulted in a conviction is in question. Examples of potential conviction integrity concerns include police or prosecutorial misconduct, the unfairness of the process the defendant received, and newly discovered or available evidence that makes the conviction unreliable. Ultimately, following a thorough investigation, the JRU Director will recommend appropriate steps to remediate any wrongful convictions or other forms of misconduct to the Attorney General.
The JRU will consider cases where an individual criminally prosecuted by the Attorney General’s Office in a Massachusetts court applies for review. The Applicant must either have been found guilty after trail, pleaded guilty to an offense, or had a guilty plea imposed after initially receiving a continuation without a finding (CWOF). To request review, the Applicant must now have a claim of:
- Actual innocence (no role in the crime);
- Actual innocence (new evidence to prove innocence); or
- Legal innocence (actions justified through self-defense, defense of others, or mental illness; culpable of lesser crime; senior trial error or discovery violations; or illegal or unjust sentences).
The JRU will also accept cases referred by a DAO where the DAO prosecuted the case to conviction, received a claim of actual innocence from the convicted individual, and refers the matter to the JRU for investigation because of an identified conflict of interest or a lack of resources to evaluate or investigate the innocence claim.
Finally, a District Attorney may refer a case for Discovery Assistance Review, a technical assistance program from the JRU for a discovery request related to an innocence claim. This tool is available to District Attorney Offices who request JRU support to respond in a timely manner to innocence-related discovery requests. This model provides for efficient resource allocation with the recognized best practices of employing an independent approach to innocence inquiries.
Following an application or referral, the JRU will conduct a preliminary review. If there is substantial evidence to support an individual’s innocence, either for an AGO prosecuted case or a DAO referral, or if there is substantial evidence affecting the integrity of the investigation that resulted in a conviction, a full re-investigation of the case will proceed. Priority review will be given to those currently serving an incarcerated sentence because of the challenged conviction.
The JRU cannot provide you with legal advice or act as your attorney. If you have any questions concerning your legal rights (ex. questions about filing motions in court or filing civil lawsuits) you should contact a private attorney. If you are currently represented by an attorney, the JRU will only communicate with your attorney.
