Challenging Wrongful Convictions in NY

Today, IDP joined wrongfully convicted New Yorkers, public defenders, elected officials and community organizations in support of the Challenging Wrongful Convictions Act (S266/A98). Together with partners including the Innocence Project, NYCDS, Families and Friends of the Wrongfully Convicted, and VOCAL-NY, we are calling for the bill to be included in the 2022-2023 budget along with $10 million in funding. 

New York is one of just five states in the U.S. that does not provide a right to attorney in post-conviction cases.


As IDP’s Deputy Director Mizue Aizeki explained, this can have devastating consequences for immigrants: "Despite the stakes, few immigrants ever have a chance to correct the record because our current post-conviction relief process is inaccessible and unforgiving. This legislation will help immigrant New Yorkers break this cycle of perpetual punishment and keep communities together."

The bill also expands access to the One Day to Protect New Yorkers Act of 2019, a sentencing reform law that has protected countless immigrants from deportation and other harsh consequences. This new bill would establish stronger post-conviction language that outlines the unfairness of initial pleas and convictions, and additional one-day sentence reductions that protect immigrants from disproportionate immigration consequences.