MEDIA CONTACT: Pat Vaughan Tremmel at (847) 491-4892 or at p-tremmel@northwestern.edu

November 4, 2002

Ryan, Northwestern Honor Students for Wrongful Convictions Work

CHICAGO --- Past and present law and journalism students, volunteers and others who worked to uncover wrongful convictions will gather at Northwestern University School of Law, where they will be honored by the Illinois governor who has taken several bold steps to address the state’s growing number of wrongful convictions.

The tribute will take place during the School of Law’s Public Interest Law Week (Nov. 11-14). Illinois Gov. George Ryan will deliver the keynote address at 12:15 p.m. Thursday, Nov. 14, at the School of Law, Thorne Auditorium, 357 E. Chicago Ave.

"The extent to which students and volunteers play roles in overturning wrongful convictions is remarkable," said Lawrence Marshall, the Northwestern University School of Law professor who is internationally recognized for his pioneering work on behalf of the wrongfully convicted. "In several cases, innocent men would have been executed but for the passion of students and extraordinary luck."

Marshall is legal director of the Center on Wrongful Convictions, which is part of the School of Law’s Bluhm Legal Clinic. Research conducted by the center contributed significantly to Ryan’s decision to instate a death penalty moratorium and establish a committee to investigate the causes and possible remedies of wrongful convictions. Clinic faculty, students and lawyers have been actively involved in the recent clemency hearings in which Ryan has been reviewing all death row cases in Illinois.

Public Interest Law Week introduces students and legal professionals to the opportunities and challenges of public service through a variety of panel discussions. Other topics that will be discussed throughout the week include separation of church and state, regulation of police misconduct, lawyering for the government and pro bono work.

During Public Interest Law Week, the School of Law also will unveil its new public service strategy, a student led initiative to reinforce students’ commitment to public service through a combination of community service projects and pro bono law work.

The week’s activities will end with a silent auction and reception at 6 p.m. Nov. 14 to benefit the Student Funded Public Interest Fellowships. SFPIF, a non-profit organization run entirely by Northwestern law students, is dedicated to funding law students working in unpaid positions at public interest organizations during the summer. In 2002, 16 grants were awarded and a total of $50,000 was distributed to students working at agencies such as the World Organization Against Torture, Environmental Protection Agency, National Center on Poverty Law, U.S. Attorney’s Office and Midwest Immigrants and Human Rights Center.

Sponsors of Public Interest Law Week include Mayer, Brown, Rowe & Maw; Latham & Watkins; and McAndrews, Held & Malloy, Ltd.