Godsey to discuss "Issues in Wrongful Convictions"

Mark A. Godsey will be discussing "Issues in Wrongful Convictions" in the Ohio Northern University Pettit College of Law moot court room (129) on Monday, March 19 at 11:30 a.m.

Godsey, professor of law and faculty director at the Lois and Richard Rothensal Institute for Justice/Ohio Innocence Project at the University of Cincinnati, will discuss his experience working with the Innocence Project. His work with an Ohio case was featured in a piece entitled "Killer Instinct" on the March 11 edition of Dateline NBC.

The event, sponsored by the Criminal Law Society, is free and open to the public.

As a federal prosecutor, Professor Godsey supervised FBI investigations, presented cases to federal grand juries, conducted jury and bench trials, and argued numerous appeals before the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit. He prosecuted several cases that received national media attention, and received several awards for his performance as an AUSA, including the Directors Award for Superior Performance, presented to him by then Attorney General Janet Reno, and a major award from the FBI.

Recent high profile cases include that of Clarence Elkins (exonerated by DNA and released from life sentence for murder and double rape) and Chris Bennett (released through DNA evidence from imprisonment for aggravated vehicular homicide. In 2004, he received a Superstar of Criminal Law Award by the Ohio Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers.

Godsey is a regular commentator on issues relating to criminal law in both the local and national press. He is frequently interviewed by local television news, and has appeared nationally on Larry King Live, Court TV news, NPR and A&Es American Justice, among others. He has been quoted in newspapers and magazines across the country, including The New York Times and Newsweek.

Published: Fri, 03/16/2007 - 8:43am